MUMBAI — The domestic benchmark indices opened flat on Friday amid negative
Asian cues, as selling was seen in the IT and auto sectors in the early trade.
Stable institutional flows — both FII and DII — are
keeping the market steady even in the absence of positive triggers. The ongoing
consolidation phase is likely to continue in the near-term, according to
analysts.
At around 9.29 am, Sensex was trading 11.77 points or
0.01 per cent up at 81,644.79 while the Nifty added 13.20 point or 0.05 per
cent at 24,846.80.
Nifty Bank was up 81.20 points or 0.15 per cent at
55,627.25. The Nifty Midcap 100 index was trading at 57,707.65 after rising
250.40 points or 0.44 per cent. Nifty Smallcap 100 index was at 17,927.15 after
climbing 37.75 points or 0.21 per cent.
According to analysts, the Nifty posted a smart recovery
in the final minutes of trading on Thursday, after spending most of the first
half in the red.
"Although the Nifty is still caught in a sideways
market defined by the 24,462 and 25,116 range, yesterday's rebound traced a
long lower shadow and a small real body that was closer to the day's high, and
that's a bullish sign. Immediate support and resistance lie at 24677 and 25000
respectively," said Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research at Axis
Securities.
Meanwhile, in the Sensex pack, Infosys, Tech Mahindra,
HCL Tech, Bajaj Finance, IndusInd Bank, Bharti Airtel, Titan and Hindustan
Unilever Limited were the top losers. Whereas, Adani Ports, Eternal, Maruti
Suzuki and Sun Pharma were the top gainers.
In the Asian markets, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Seoul, China
and Japan were trading in the red.
In the last trading session, Dow Jones in the US closed
at 42,215.73, up 117.03 points, or 0.28 per cent. The S&P 500 ended
with a gain of 23.62 points, or 0.40 per cent, at 5,912.17 and the Nasdaq
closed at 19,175.87, up 74.93 points, or 0.39 per cent.
“Investors should understand two distinct big trends that
will weigh on markets: One, India’s macros are strong and improving. Two, this
positive trend in macros is not getting reflected in corporate earnings,"
said Dr VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Ltd.
This is the fundamental reason for the range-bound
movement of the market.
On the institutional front, foreign institutional
investors (FIIs) were net buyers as they bought equities worth 884.03 crore on
May 29, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased equities worth
4,286.50 crore.
According to market watchers, steadily improving macros
like resilient GDP growth, down trending inflation and interest rates and
declining fiscal and current account deficits lay the foundation for a strong
economy and earnings recovery in the medium term.
