Nifty50: Market Watch: Nifty can hover around 18,600 for a while | The Economic Times Podcast

Indecisiveness was palpable on Dalal Street on the first day of the December expiry series on Friday, with Sensex and Nifty ending flat near record high levels. Gains in auto and IT stocks were offset by declines in banking stocks.

The 30-share Sensex ended 21 points higher at 62,258, while its broader peer, Nifty50, ended above the 18,500 mark.

Among Sensex stocks, Reliance, Wipro, Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank, Tech Mahindra, Tata Steel, Maruti and M&M were the top gainers in today’s session, rising about 0.5-1%. L&T, NTPC, ITC, TCS, Power Grid and UltraTech Cement also closed higher.

On the other hand, Nestle, Kotak Bank, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finance, Titan, HCL Tech, and HDFC Bank closed lower.

Earlier in Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.35% and South Korea’s Kospi plunged 0.14% while China’s Shanghai Composite rose 0.40%. The Indian rupee declined 0.07% to end at 81.68 per US dollar amid tepid risk appetite in Asian currency markets, while the Brent crude January futures rose 1.72% to $86.82/barrel.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of bulls. About 2,113 stocks gained, 1,388 declined, and 131 remained unchanged.

Mr Gaurav Ratnaparkhi of Sharekhan said the benchmark index can hover around the all-time high of 18604 for a while.

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