Indian benchmark indices are set for a gap-up opening on Thursday as the government’s GST rationalization announcement may lift the markets higher.
The late-night announcement may lift stocks from various sectors including electronics, insurance, FMCG, automobile and more.
Nifty futures on the NSE International Exchange traded 151.40 points, or 0.61 per cent, up at 24,965, hinting at a positive start for the domestic market on Thursday. Asian stocks move higher in early trading on Thursday. Nikkei surged more than a per cent, while KOSPI gained more than half a per cent. However, Hang Seng was down nearly 2 per cent.
Investors remain focused on the outcome of the GST Council meeting amidst expectations of potential rate rationalization, which could benefit key sectors, said Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Research of Motilal Oswal Financial Services. “We expect the Indian markets to remain range-bound, tracking global cues and sector-specific developments with policy decisions from the GST Council.”
The Nasdaq and S&P 500 ended higher on Wednesday as investors were optimistic that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 24.58 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 45,271.23, the S&P 500 gained 32.72 points, or 0.51 per cent, to 6,448.26 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 218.10 points, or 1.03 per cent, to 21,497.73.
The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes rose to 4.2129 per cent compared with its US close of 4.211 per cent on Wednesday. The dollar index was unchanged at 98.153 In commodities markets, Brent crude dipped 0.5 per cent to $67.29 a barrel. Precious metal prices nudged lower, with spot gold off 0.2 per cent at $3552.49 per ounce after hitting a record yesterday.
Metals and consumer-oriented sectors are showing relative strength, whereas persistent underperformance in IT and banking continues to weigh on sentiment, said Ajit Mishra, SVP of Research at Religare Broking. “We continue to view the index as being in a consolidation phase. Traders are advised to keep positions light and align strategies with evolving sectoral trends.”
Provisional data available with NSE suggest that FPIs turned net sellers of domestic stocks to the tune of Rs 1,666.46 crore on Wednesday. On the other hand, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) turned buyers of Indian equities to the tune of Rs 2,495.33 crore on a net-net basis.
Nifty & Sensex Outlook
Nifty50 has formed a bullish candle, and on intraday charts, it is holding an uptrend continuation pattern, which is largely positive. For the bulls now, 24,750/80,700 would be the immediate resistance zone, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research at Kotak Securities.
“A successful breakout above 24,750/80,700 could push the market towards 24,850-24,900 /81,000-81,200. On the flip side, 24,600/80,200 and 24,500/80,000 would be key support zones for traders. However, below 24,500/80,000, the uptrend would become vulnerable. If the market falls below this level, traders may prefer to exit their long positions,” he said.
The market action indicates an upside continuation pattern in Nifty after a small volatility of Tuesday. Nifty is heading towards the crucial overhead resistance of 24750-24,800 levels, said Nagaraj Shetti, Senior Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities. “A sustainable move above 24,800 could pull Nifty towards another resistance of 25,150 in the near term. Immediate support is placed at 24,550,” he said.
Nifty Bank outlook
“We expect Nifty Bank to extend consolidation in the range 53,300-55,000 in the coming sessions,” said Bajaj Broking. “It has immediate support at 53,500-53,300 levels being the confluence of the 200 days EMA and the low of May 2025. A breach below the same will signal acceleration of decline towards the key support area of 52,500-52,000 levels in the coming week.”
Nifty Bank found support near its 200-DEMA and formed a bullish engulfing candlestick pattern on the daily chart, signalling strength, said Hrishikesh Yedve, AVP Technical and Derivative Research at Asit C Mehta Investment Interrmediates. “The low of the bullish engulfing candlestick is placed near 53,560, will act as immediate support. A buy-on-dips strategy should be adopted if it holds above this level.”