Trade Setup For April 2: Nifty To Inch Higher With Key Support Seen At 22,350
The GIFT Nifty, an early indicator of the Nifty 50 index's performance in India, was trading 58.5 points, or 0.26%, higher at 22,551.50 as of 8:06 a.m.
India's benchmark stock indices are inching towards the greed zone without big global or domestic triggers on Tuesday.
Economy-linked stocks showed spunk in trade and could remain in focus on Tuesday, with private banks continuing their show. Further, the subscription numbers of the telecom companies could lead to a muted performance in trade.
The Nifty 50 has formed a small-bodied bullish candle and closed with gains of around 140 points, according to Chandan Taparia, head of technical and derivatives research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.
Nifty has to continue to hold above the 22,350 mark to witness an upmove towards 22,650 and 22,750 levels, while downside support exists at 22,350 and 22,222 zones, according to Taparia.
Since it is the beginning of a new series, options data is scattered at various far-strike prices, according to Taparia. On the weekly front, the maximum call open interest is at 23,000, then 22,500, while the maximum put OI is at 22,000, then 22,200, he said.
Option data suggests a broader trading range in between 22,000 and 22,800 zones, while an immediate trading range is between 22,300 and 22,600 zones, Taparia said.
The GIFT Nifty, an early indicator of the Nifty 50 index's performance in India, was trading 58.5 points, or 0.26%, higher at 22,551.50 as of 8:06 a.m.
FII And DII Activity
Overseas investors in Indian equities turned net sellers on Monday after three consecutive sessions of buying.
Foreign portfolio investors offloaded stocks worth Rs 522.3 crore while domestic institutional investors remained net buyers and mopped up equities worth Rs 1,208.4 crore, the NSE data showed.
Markets On Monday
India's benchmark indices extended gains to the third day to start FY25 by touching a fresh record high as shares of HDFC Bank Ltd., Larsen & Toubro Ltd., and Tata Steel Ltd. rose.
The NSE Nifty was trading 135.10 points, or 0.61%, higher at 22,462.00, and the S&P BSE Sensex was trading 363.20 points, or 0.49%, up at 74,014.55.
On the NSE, 10 sectors ended higher out of 12, with the NSE Nifty Media rising over 4% to become the top-performing sector. The NSE Auto index fell the most among sectoral indices dragged by losses in Eicher Motors Ltd. and Bajaj Auto Ltd.
Broader markets outperformed benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Midcap index settled 1.64% higher, and the S&P BSE Smallcap index settled 2.98% higher.
Major Stocks In News
Maruti Suzuki India: The auto major produced 1.63 lakh units of passenger vehicles for March vs. 1.50 lakh units last year and the total production volume was 1.67 lakh units vs. 1.54 lakh units.
Ashok Leyland: The company reported total domestic vehicle sales of 21,317 units vs. 22,885 units, down 7% YoY, and total domestic plus export vehicle sales of 22,866 vs. 23,926, down 4%.
Aditya Birla Fashion: The company plans to vertically demerge its Madura Fashion and Lifestyle business into a separately listed company.
Top Brokerage Call
Motilal Oswal On Dalmia Bharat
The brokerage maintains 'buy' at Rs 2,500 target, implying an upside of 25%.
It expects double-digit volume growth in Q4 FY24.
The delay in the acquisition of Jaiprakash Associates cement assets remains a key overhang.
The brokerage believes prices in the firm's key market areas will improve.
Leverage at a comfortable level despite significant expansion.
It has cut FY24 Ebitda estimates by 4% on weak pricing.
Citi on Larsen & Toubro
The brokerage maintains 'buy' and increases the target price to Rs 4,373 (vs. Rs 4,082 earlier).
Targer price increased on updating the current market prices of listed subsidiaries on a SoTP basis.
Target P/E on core plant and machinery business increased to 40 times given the capex upcycle and rerating in the sector.
Rerating based on multi-year lows in working capital, healthy execution and an increasing return on equity.
L&T remains the top pick in India's infrastructure and industrial space.
Global Cues
Stocks in the Asia-Pacific region saw a muted opening and struggled to gain traction as traders priced in less monetary policy easing by the Federal Reserve this year.
The KOSPI was trading 0.01% lower at 2,747, and the S&P ASX 200 was trading 0.02% lower at 7,895 as of 6:47 a.m.
U.S. stocks and bonds were sent lower after solid factory data reinforced speculation that the Federal Reserve will be in no rush to cut interest rates, Bloomber reported.
The S&P 500 index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.20% and 0.60%, respectively, as of Monday. Nasdaq Composite ended 0.11% higher.
Brent crude was trading 0.42% higher at $87.79 a barrel. Gold was lower by 0.18% at $2,247.36 an ounce.
Rupee Update
India's money and the debt market were shut on Monday on account of annual closing of books by banks.
The Indian rupee closed weaker against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, the last trading day of fiscal 2024. The local currency depreciated two paise to close at Rs 83.40 against the U.S. dollar.
