Indian Equity Benchmarks Open Flat as Investors Eye Inflation Data; Sectoral Pressure Persists

Indian equity benchmarks started Thursday’s session on a muted note as investors awaited key retail inflation data. Early trade saw profit booking in the auto, IT and PSU banking counters.

By 9:28 AM, the BSE Sensex edged up 69.22 points or 0.08 per cent to 82,584.36, while the NSE Nifty gained 23.65 points or 0.09 per cent to reach 25,165.05.

The Nifty Bank index climbed 98.65 points or 0.17 per cent to 56,558.40. Meanwhile, the Nifty Midcap 100 shed 120.40 points or 0.20 per cent to 59,267.75, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 slipped 26.40 points or 0.14 per cent to 18,772.35.

Analysts noted that while the Nifty closed higher on the previous day, it failed to sustain its intraday highs.

Technically, the formation of a doji candle with a pronounced upper shadow – following the ‘upside-gap two crows’ pattern – suggests that bulls must defend the 25,029 level in the near term.

“If bears are able to drag the index below the 24,987-25,029 zone, a test of the 24,800-24,863 area will become a high probability event,” said Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research, Axis Securities.

Top gainers and laggards

Among the Sensex constituents, Asian Paints, Sun Pharma, Bajaj Finserv, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance, NTPC and HDFC Bank led the gainers. On the flip side, Infosys, Eternal, Tata Motors, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Tata Steel and IndusInd Bank lagged.

Across Asia, markets displayed mixed cues – Hong Kong, Bangkok, Jakarta, and Japan traded lower, whereas Seoul and Chinese indices were in the green.

Overnight in the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed almost flat at 42,865.77, down 1.10 points.

The S&P 500 fell 16.57 points or 0.27 per cent to 6,022.24, while the Nasdaq lost 99.11 points or 0.50 per cent, ending at 19,615.88.

Market analysts believe the sideways trend may persist due to a lack of strong positive triggers.

There are also indications of a potential agreement between the United States and China, though Chinese authorities have yet to issue a formal statement.

“Also, US President Donald Trump has declared that he will be sending letters to trade partners in the next two weeks setting universal tariffs. Market participants will be waiting and watching for clarity on this. The tariff crisis is not yet over,” said Dr VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.

On the institutional activity front, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 446.31 crore on 11 June, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) made net purchases worth Rs 1,584.87 crore.

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