Nifty hits new high, Sensex gains on positive budget expectations; Bajaj Auto in focus

Realty, metal and energy stocks rose the most with realty being the biggest gainer on the bourses.

Benchmark index Nifty cruised past the 24,650 mark and scaled to a fresh record high on July 16, extending gains for the third session in a row. The Sensex also inched closer to a new high buoyed by hopes of a positive budget, due on July 23.  First-quarter earnings and budget are key determinants that investors are eyeing.

At 9:30 am, the Sensex was up 0.2 percent at 80,800 and the Nifty was up 0.17 percent at 24,628. About 2,054 shares advanced, 816 shares declined, and 99 shares unchanged.

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"The momentum is still on the positive side. We have not seen any kind of reversal signs yet. (0:14) And if you look at the market breadth, then the market breadth is still quite strong," Ruchit Jain, research analyst at 5paisa, told Moneycontrol. He also said that some rain-bound activity is normal and overall business would be positive for the Nifty.

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Two-wheeler major Bajaj Auto will be in focus today as the company is slated to announce its Q1 FY25 results later in the day. An increase in volumes and a diversified product mix are expected to boost the company's sales to high teen growth rates. The Bajaj Auto stock has rallied over 40 percent since the start of the year.

The broader markets -- midcap and smallcap index -- outperformed the headline index as both were trading at 0.4 and 0.6 percent, respectively. Jain states that while midcap and smallcap stocks are in an overbought zone, the uptrend may continue for select trades. He advised traders to consider taking partial profits at current levels. The midcap index hit a new high of 16,169.

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Among sectoral indices, realty, metal and energy stocks rose the most with realty being the biggest gainer on the bourses. Healthcare, Pharma and IT declined, with the IT index slipping 0.4 percent each. HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra and Wipro were the major laggards.

BPCL, Coal India, Bharti Airtel, Adani Enterprises, and ONGC were the top gainers on the Nifty. Dr Reddy's, LTIMindree, HCL Tech, Hero MotoCorp, and L&T were losers.

VIX, also known as the fear gauge, rose 1.1 percent to 14.4.

"Nifty can find support at 24,500 followed by 24,450 and 24,400. On the higher side, 24,650 can be immediate resistance, followed by 24,700 and 24,800, " Deven Mehata, research analyst at Choice Broking said. "The charts of Bank Nifty indicate that it may get support at 52,200, followed by 52,000 and 51,800. If the index advances further, 52,700 would be the initial key resistance, followed by 52,800 and 53,000," he added.

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