Stock market today: The Indian benchmark stock market indices, NIFTY50 and BSE SENSEX, are set to gap down at the opening bell on Thursday, April 30, as the GIFT NIFTY futures indicate a turbulent session ahead.
The NIFTY futures at GIFT City in Ahmedabad were down 18 points or 0.07% to 24,087.5 points amid the weak cues from the Asian markets, dynamic geopolitical developments at the Strait of Hormuz and oil prices touching $120 per barrel (bbl) levels on Thursday.
During the early hours on Thursday, the GIFT NIFTY futures were up 0.32%, only to reverse their trend closer to the market opening bell.
Both the NIFTY50 and SENSEX closed higher after Wednesday’s market session, after the investor sentiment turned positive, backed by strong corporate earnings despite consistent foreign investor outflows and higher oil prices.
NSE data showed that FIIs (foreign institutional investors) kept up their selling streak in emerging markets like India, while the domestic buyers supported the buying side on Wednesday, April 28.
Here are key things to know before market opens:
Weak cues from Asian markets
All three benchmark indices, the Asia Dow, Nikkei 225, and Hang Seng, were trading lower on Thursday, April 30, as investors remained cautious with benchmark Brent crude oil surging to $120 per barrel.
Asia Dow was down 0.77% or 44.71 points to 5,797 points, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 0.88% or 523 points to 59,396.82 points, and the Hong Kong-based Hang Seng was down 0.70% or 180 points to 25,928 points on Thursday.
While indices like China’s Shanghai Composite were trading 0.12% or 5.10 points higher at 4,112.13 points on Thursday, compared to 4,107.51 points at the previous stock market session.
FII/DII activity
NSE data showed that the foreign investors were net sellers on Wednesday’s market session, selling ₹2,468.42 crore worth of assets from the capital market segment across the exchanges.
Investors tend to pull money out of emerging markets like India, on the backdrop of rising uncertainty in the market, higher oil prices, and a wider shift to safe-haven gold and benchmark US dollar.
The domestic investors were net buyers as they purchased ₹2,262.17 crore worth of assets from the capital market segment across the exchanges on Wednesday, in turn, supporting the benchmark indices.
Trade setup for today
The NIFTY50 index reclaimed its key psychological level of 24,000 points during Wednesday’s stock market session, yet on daily charts, the index failed to close above its 50 EMA levels of 24,195 points, which is a near-term resistance.
Although the NIFTY50 surged to an intraday high of 24,334 points, the selling pressure in the market dragged down the gains to close near 24,177 points on April 29. The trade setup remains the same as yesterday, with the 50 EMA being the immediate resistance and the 20 EMA level being the key support for the day.
Wall Street update
The US markets’ benchmark indices, like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite, closed flat after Wednesday’s market session, after the US Federal Reserve decided to keep its benchmark interest rates unchanged, in line with market expectations.
The S&P 500 index closed 0.04% lower at 7,135.95 points, while the Nasdaq Composite index closed 0.04% higher at 24,673.24 points after Wednesday’s trading session, according to MarketWatch data.
The benchmark index, Dow Jones Industrial Average, lost 0.57%, closing at 48,861.81 after Wednesday’s trading session on the heightened uncertainty in the market.
US Fed policy outcome
The US Federal Reserve’s Jerome Powell-led 12-members of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), after its two-day meeting, decided to keep the key interest rates unchanged in the range of 3.50-3.75% as inflation concerns remain in the market.
In its policy statement, the FOMC also said that although the recent indicators suggest that the economic activity in the United States has been expanding at a “solid pace,” the job gains remained low with little change in the unemployment rate.
The committee also highlighted that the inflationary concerns for the US economy remain elevated due to the rise in global energy prices in the market.
“Developments in the Middle East are contributing to a high level of uncertainty about the economic outlook. The Committee is attentive to the risks to both sides of its dual mandate,” said the FOMC in its statement.
Stocks to watch today
Q4 results stocks like Hindustan Unilever (HUL), Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, Adani Enterprises, Bajaj Finserv, among others, will remain in focus of the stock market investors on April 30 on account of the company’s financial results release.
Others, like Larsen & Toubro, will be in focus after it entered into a pact to divest its entire stake in L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Ltd for ₹1,461.47 crore.
Vedanta shares will be in focus after the company released an update on the listing of its demerged entities and its Q4 results. Bajaj Finance, Motilal Oswal Financial Services, and Waaree Energies share prices will also remain in focus of investors on Thursday’s market, for their Q4 earnings reaction.