Stock market today: Gift Nifty down 44 pts; levels to watch for Nifty, Sensex & Nifty Bank

Indian benchmark indices are likely to open slightly lower on Friday, ahead of the weekend. However, traders will be looking at the opportunities to buy amid a slew of positive triggers including FIIs' buying, optimism in the US markets and positive remarks for India by the US President Donald Trump.

Nifty futures on the NSE International Exchange traded 44.40 points, or 0.18 per cent, down at 25,466.50, hinting at a negative start for the domestic market on Friday. Asian stocks were trading mixed on Friday. Nikkei surged nearly 0.80 per cent, while KOSPI was down half a per cent. Hang Seng was trading little changed.

"We expect the gradual up move to continue, with markets tracking tariff-related developments guiding near-term sentiment," said Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services. "Reasonable valuations, easing stress in retail loans, and structural drivers like rising SIP flows and insurance penetration underpin a positive growth outlook."

Wall Street's main indexes posted record-high closes on Thursday after rate cuts. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 124.10 points, or 0.27 per cent, to 46,142.42, the S&P 500 gained 31.61 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 6,631.96 and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 209.40 points, or 0.94 per cent, to 22,470.73.

The US dollar held largely steady in early Asian trading on Friday as investors looked to fresh catalysts after the Federal Reserve's meeting. The dollar index tacked on 0.1 per cent, recovering slightly from a three-and-a-half-year low on Wednesday, after the Fed cut rates by 25 basis points.

Oil prices were little changed on Friday after settling lower in the previous session, the day after the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the first time this year, due to worries about fuel demand in the United States. Brent crude futures were down 1 cent at $67.43 a barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate futures were down 4 cents at $63.53.

The favorable sentiment across the key sectors would keep the tone positive, said Ajit Mishra, SVP of Research at Religare Broking. "We thus recommend focusing more on stock-specific opportunities now, preferring stocks where risk to reward is favorable," he said.

Provisional data available with NSE suggest that FPIs turned net buyers of domestic stocks to the tune of Rs 366.69 crore on Thursday. On the other hand, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) turned buyers of Indian equities to the tune of Rs 3,326.56 crore on a net-net basis.
 

Nifty & Sensex outlook

For day traders, the higher bottom support is placed near 25,300/82,700. As long as the market trades above this level, the bullish sentiment is likely to continue. On the higher side, 25,500/83,300 would act as an immediate resistance zone for the bulls, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research at Kotak Securities.

"A successful breakout above 25,500/83,300 could push the market up to 25,600–25,625/83,500-83,600. On the flip side, if the market falls below 25,300/82,700, the uptrend would become vulnerable. Below this level, traders may prefer to exit their long positions," he said.

Nifty is in continuation of an uptrend with immediate support placed near 25,250, the previous swing high on the daily charts. On the higher side, 25,550 and 25,670 are the key resistances to watch out for, said Nandish Shah, Deputy Vice President at HDFC Securities.
 

Nifty Bank outlook

Nifty Bank formed a hanging man candle, reflecting uncertainty. On the higher side, it will face hurdles near the 56,000–56,160 zone, where major resistance is placed, said Hrishikesh Yedve, AVP Technical and Derivative Research, Asit C. Mehta Investment Interrmediates. "Immediate support for the Bank Nifty is seen near 55,050, where the 34-DEMA is placed, followed by 54,500. Thus, traders are advised to buy-near-support and sell-near-resistance mentioned above," he said.

Nifty Bank may continue its pullback rally in the near term. Going ahead, the zone of 56,000-56,100 will act as an important hurdle for the index, said Sudeep Shah, Head of Technical Research and Derivatives at SBI Securities. "Any sustainable move above the level of 56000 will lead to a sharp upside rally upto the level of 56,600, followed by the 57,000 level in the short term. While, on the downside, the zone of 55,400-55,300 will act as crucial support."