Market Watch: Market Watch: Why is there such a lack of conviction at current levels? | The Economic Times Podcast

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-India’s April crude imports hit record, says S&P
-Import cover falls below December levels
-Tata Motors warns of price and chip risks

Let’s take a quick glance at what happened on Dalal Street today.

In line with this week’s trend, the domestic equity markets started on a firm note, only to surrender all gains by the end of the day as concerns over elevated inflation and aggressive rate hikes by the Reserve Bank of India took a toll on risk appetite.

Data released after market hours on Thursday showed domestic inflation at an 8-year high of 7.79 per cent in April. The data strengthens the case for the RBI to follow up last week’s surprise 40-basis-point rate hike with more rate increases going ahead.

Friday’s fall in headline indices, driven by late selling in banking and financial stocks, marks the sixth consecutive day when stock markets have settled lower.
This week’s fall marks the longest weekly losing streak for Sensex and Nifty in over two years since the run ended in April 2020.

The Nifty50 has declined over 10 per cent in the last five weeks of fall. According to BSE data, stocks have erased Rs 10 lakh crore from investors’ portfolios this week.

The BSE benchmark Sensex fell nearly 1,000 points from the day’s high, ending 136.69 points or 0.26 per cent lower at 52,793.62. Its broader peer, the Nifty 50, settled 40 points lower, below the 15,800 mark.

Broader markets, however, bucked the trend, with the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices registering gains of 1 per cent each. Smallcap and midcap stocks have borne the brunt of the recent selling pressure.

Fear gauge India VIX fell 3.2 per cent to end at 23.49.

15 of the 30 stocks on the BSE Sensex declined, with SBI, ICICI Bank and NTPC losing 3 per cent each. Bharti Airtel, Axis Bank and Maruti shed 2 per cent each.

Sun Pharmaceuticals rose 4 per cent, followed by M&M, which gained 3 per cent. HUL, ITC and Titan gained 2 per cent each.

11 stocks hit upper circuits while 7 tested their lower circuit limits during the day. 12 stocks tested their 52-week highs during the session, whereas 88 tested their 52-week lows.

We have Narendra Solanki from Anand Rathi Shares & Stock Brokers to share his views on the day’s action and the road ahead:

Welcome to the show sir:
1. Yet again this week, markets opened higher but surrendered all gains by the end of trade. Why is there such a lack of conviction at current levels?
2. Midcap and Smallcap indices rebounded smartly today after a recent slump. What is your outlook?

We also caught up with Rajesh Bhosale of Angel One to decode the technical charts for you.
1. The Nifty50 settled below the 15,800 level. What do the technical charts suggest about it?
2. In keeping with the recent trend, Bank Nifty saw a larger fall than the headline index. What is your outlook on the sector?

Asian stocks settled with gains for the day. European markets were trading with decent gains. US stock futures were up, signalling a strong start to US equities later in the day.

That’s all for now. Do check out ETMarkets.com for all the news, market analysis, investment strategies and dozens of stock recommendations. Enjoy your evening. Bye Bye!