The stock market opened flat on Thursday with a slight dip, following an all-time high close in the previous trading session.
The Sensex started the day 94.13 points lower at 78,580.12, while the Nifty fell 19.25 points to open at 23,849.55. The market sentiment was dampened by weak cues from Asian markets.
The market witnessed a mixed performance among Nifty firms, with 21 advances and 29 declines.
Top gainers included Ultra Cement, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, Grasim Industries, JSW Steel, and Tata Steel. Conversely, Tech Mahindra, TCS, HCL Technologies, Shriram Finance, and Nestle India were among the top losers.
Ajay Bagga, banking and market expert, commented on the market's performance, saying, “Foreign Institutional Investors (FII) selling returned in a big way yesterday in the cash markets but DIIs stepped in to absorb that selling. Today we have a weak global market handsoff. US markets recovered in the second half on Wednesday trading to end mildly positive but Asian markets and US futures both are weak on Thursday morning.”
Bagga emphasised the upcoming significant events, including the U.S. Presidential Election Debate and the U.S. Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation number, which are expected to influence the market.
He added, “Two big events coming up are the US Presidential Election Debate tonight and the US PCE inflation number on Friday. Indian markets are in an overbought zone, and we expect some consolidation at these levels. The next triggers will be US inflation number based rate cut expectation anchoring and the Union Budget expectations, along with the start of the earnings announcement season in two weeks time.”
In the U.S., indices closed marginally higher on Wednesday, buoyed by Amazon's generative AI initiative, which pushed its valuation past USD 2 trillion.
However, a disappointing outlook from Micron Technology impacted the semiconductor sector, including major player Nvidia.
Investors are now keenly awaiting the U.S. PCE price index data, the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation, which is due on Friday.
Market participants are closely watching the developments in global economic indicators and key events. The Indian market, after achieving an all-time high, appears to be in a consolidation phase, awaiting further cues from both domestic and international arenas.
The anticipated U.S. inflation data and domestic earnings are expected to provide clearer direction in the coming weeks.
As the trading day progresses, investors will be looking for any signs of recovery or further decline in the market sentiment, with a focus on the performance of key sectors and companies that could influence overall market movements. (ANI)
