The Nifty is likely to remain under pressure in Friday's session as technical indicators point to weakening momentum, with analysts identifying 23,950 as a crucial support level for the benchmark index. Market participants will closely track the 24,000-23,950 zone on the downside and 24,200-24,230 on the upside for the next directional cues.
Sudeep Shah, Head - Technical and Derivatives Research at SBI Securities, said the 24,000-23,950 zone is expected to act as a crucial support area for the Nifty, with an upward-sloping trendline positioned around these levels.
"A decisive breach below 23,950 could trigger further weakness, paving the way for a correction towards the 23,800 mark," Shah said. On the upside, the 100-day EMA zone of 24,200-24,230 is likely to act as an immediate resistance hurdle.
"A sustained move above this zone would be required to improve the near-term outlook and open the door for further upside," he added. The setup suggests that the Nifty could remain range-bound but with a negative bias unless the index manages to reclaim and sustain levels above the 100-day EMA.
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Technical indicators also point towards continued weakness in the near term. Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, said the Relative Strength Index (RSI) stands around 43, below the neutral mark, indicating weakening momentum.
Meanwhile, the MACD line is at -8, below the signal line at 32, while the histogram stands at -40. According to Ponmudi, these readings suggest that bearish momentum continues to dominate. The combination of a sub-50 RSI and negative MACD setup indicates that buying momentum remains subdued, making the 23,950 support level particularly important for the index.
Bank Nifty Outlook
Bank Nifty ended Thursday's session on a weak note, falling 274 points, or 0.47%, as selling pressure emerged after the index failed to sustain gains above 57,800. The index opened higher but slipped below the 57,800 mark early in the session and subsequently formed a series of lower highs and lower lows. An attempt to recover in the second half of trade lacked sufficient buying strength, leaving the index within the 57,600-57,500 support zone at the close.
Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, said 57,600-57,500 will act as the immediate support zone for Bank Nifty. A decisive break below this range could intensify selling pressure and drag the index towards 57,300-57,200 and lower levels. On the upside, 57,900-58,000 is expected to act as the immediate resistance zone.
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