Stock market today: Gift Nifty up 24 points; key levels for Nifty, Sensex & Nifty Bank

Indian benchmark indices are likely to open mildly higher on Thursday as the weekly expiry of F&O contracts may add to volatility on the bourses. Asian stock were trading mixed in the early trade, while US stocks settled mostly lower ahead of Jerome Powell's speech at Jackson Hole Symposium later this week.

Nifty futures on the NSE International Exchange traded 24.20 points, or 0.10 per cent, up at 25,107.50, hinting at a positive start for the domestic market on Thursday. Asian shares were trading mixed in the early trade. Nikkei dropped nearly half a per cent, while Hang Seng edged marginally lower. KOSPI was up by a per cent.

Siddhartha Khemka, Head Of Research of Motilal Oswal Financial Services said that the near-term market outlook remains positive on the back of government’s policy support and consumption boost, while investors continue to track global developments, sectoral trends and key macro data- including India and US Manufacturing and Services PMI due on Thursday.

Wall Street shares dropped on Wednesday, with a tech selloff extending into a second day. The S&P 500 ended down 0.2 per cent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite slid 0.7 per cent, adding to a steep decline on Tuesday. Both indexes partly recovered from deeper, earlier losses. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.04 per cent.

The US dollar drifted on Thursday as investors fretted about the Federal Reserve's independence after yet another attack from President Donald Trump ahead of remarks from Chair Jerome Powell later this week that could influence the outlook for rates. The dollar index was steady at 98.301.

Oil prices gained slightly on Thursday as larger-than-expected declines crude oil and fuel inventories in the US, the world's biggest oil user, supported expectations for steady demand. Brent crude futures were up 13 cents, or 0.19 per cent, to $66.97 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 15 cents, or 0.24 per cent, to $62.86.

Participants should continue to focus on stock selection based on sectoral strength and rotation. While broader indices are also trending higher, the pace of advance remains moderate, indicating selective participation, said Ajit Mishra, SVP of Research at Religare Broking. "Hence, caution is warranted in the midcap and smallcap segments," he said.

Provisional data available with NSE suggest that FPIs turned net sellers of domestic stocks to the tune of Rs 1,100.09 crore on Wednesday. On the other hand, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) turned buyers of Indian equities to the tune of Rs 1,806.34 crore on a net-net basis.
 

Nifty & Sensex outlook
For day traders, the 25,000/81,500 and 24,930/81,300 levels would act as key support zones. As long as the market trades above these levels, the bullish sentiment is likely to continue, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research at Kotak Securities. On the higher side, the index could move up to 25,150–25,200/82,300–82,500. Below 24,930/81,300, the uptrend would become vulnerable.

Nifty is placed at the hurdle of down sloping trend line at 25,080 levels and the overall chart bullish pattern indicates chances of decisive break out of the hurdle soon, said Nagaraj Shetti, Senior Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities. "Further upside from here could pull Nifty towards the next overhead resistance of 25,300 in the short term. Immediate support is placed at 24,900."
 

Nifty Bank outlook
Nifty Bank ended on a positive note and the zone of 56,000-56,100 will act as an important hurdle, said Sudeep Shah, Head of Technical and Derivatives Research at SBI Securities. "Any sustainable move above 56,100 will lead to a sharp upside rally upto the level of 56,500, followed by 56,900 in the short term. On the downside, the zone of 55,500-55,400 will act as crucial support."

Nifty Bank formed a small bear candle signaling consolidation amid stock specific action. The index may extend consolidation in the range of 54,800-56,300. Only a movement beyond this range will signal the next directional move. Key support area 54,800 and 55,000 - a region that aligns with the 100-day EMA and key Fibonacci retracement levels from the prior upward move, said Bajaj Broking.