The market ended lower for the second consecutive session on March 24 on weak global cues as banking sector weighed heavy, while a surprise 25 percent hike in securities transaction tax on futures & options trade at home dented the sentiment.
The 30-pack Sensex fell 398 points to 57,527, while the broad-based Nifty declined 132 points to 16,945. The Nifty formed a long bearish candlestick on the daily charts, breaking the lower threshold of downward sloping channel, making the street nervous about the future trend.
"A long bear candle was formed on the daily chart, which indicates a sell on rise action in the market around 17,200 levels. The recent swing high of 17,207 could now be considered as a new lower top of the sequence and the market is on the way down to the new lower bottom - below 16,800 levels in the near term," Nagaraj Shetti, Technical Research Analyst, HDFC Securities, said.
For the Nifty, the short term trend continues to be weak. The index can slide to 16,800-16,700 during the week. On the upper side, the area of 17,050 could be a crucial resistance, Nagaraj said.
We have collated 15 data points to help you spot profitable trades:
Note: The open interest (OI) and volume data of stocks in this article are the aggregates of three-month data and not just the current month.
Key support and resistance levels on Nifty
As per the pivot charts, the Nifty has support at 16,917 followed by 16,872 and 16,798. If the index moves up, the key resistance levels to watch out for are 17,064 followed by 17,109 and 17,183.
The Bank Nifty, too, ended lower, closing 220 points lower at 39,395 and formed a bearish candle on the daily charts, with a long upper shadow, indicating continued pressure at higher levels.
"The index as long as it does not surpass the level of 40,000 remains in a sell-on-rise mode. The immediate support on the downside is at 39,000 and a breach below this will lead to a sharp decline," Kunal Shah, Senior Technical & Derivative Analyst at LKP Securities said.
The momentum indicator relative strength index (RSI) trading in the bearish zone confirms the weakness in the index, he said.
The important pivot level, which will act as a support, is at 39,305 followed by 39,194 and 39,013. On the upside, key resistance levels are 39,667, 39,778, and 39,959.
On a monthly basis, the maximum Call open interest (OI) is at 18,000 strike, with 1.28 crore contracts, which is expected to be a crucial resistance for the Nifty in the coming sessions.
This is followed by a 17,100 strike, comprising 98.68 lakh contracts, and a 17,500 strike, where there are more than 89.99 lakh contracts.
Call writing was seen at 17,000 strike, which added 52.88 lakh contracts, followed by 17,500 strike, which added 31.66 lakh contracts and 17,100 strike, which accumulated 28.87 lakh contracts.
We have seen Call unwinding at 18,000 strike, which shed 14.45 lakh contracts, followed by 17,800 strike, which shed 12.03 lakh contracts, and 18,100 strike, which shed 6.14 lakh contracts.
The maximum Put OI was at 17,000 strike, with 66.92 lakh contracts, which is expected to be a crucial level for the coming sessions.
This is followed by the 16,500 strike, comprising 57.78 lakh contracts, and the 16,000 strike, where we have 54.33 lakh contracts.
Put writing was seen at 16,800 strike, which added 19.61 lakh contracts, followed by 16,700 strike, which added 16.7 lakh contracts, and 16,900 strike, which added 15.4 lakh contracts.
We have seen Put unwinding at 17,100 strike, which shed 24.73 lakh contracts, followed by 17,200 strike, which shed 7.55 lakh contracts, and 17,400 strike, which shed 2.07 lakh contracts.
Stocks with a high delivery percentage
A high delivery percentage suggests that investors are showing interest in these stocks. The highest delivery was seen in Bharti Airtel, Hindustan Unilever, Power Grid Corporation of India, Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals and Marico among others.
An increase in open interest (OI) and in price mostly indicates a build-up of long positions. Based on the OI percentage, 10 stocks, including Ramco Cements, IndiaMART InterMESH and Dalmia Bharat, witnessed a long build-up.
In most cases, a decline in OI and a decrease in price indicates a long unwinding. Based on the OI percentage, 89 stocks, including Muthoot Finance, JK Cement, AU Small Finance Bank, and Abbott India, witnessed long unwinding.
80 stocks see a short build-up
An increase in OI accompanied by a decrease in price mostly indicates a build-up of short positions. Based on the OI percentage, 80 stocks, including Metropolis Healthcare, Vedanta and Colgate Palmolive, saw a short build-up.
A decrease in OI along with an increase in price is an indication of short-covering. Based on the OI percentage, 15 stocks were on the short-covering list. These included Hindustan Aeronautics, L&T Technology Services, Atul, Divis Laboratories and Aditya Birla Fashion.
TTK Healthcare: Ace investor Sunil Singhania-owned asset management firm Abakkus Asset Manager LLP has bought 1.31 lakh equity shares at an average price of Rs 911.08 per share, and its Abakkus Diversified Alpha Fund purchased 1.15 lakh shares at an average price of Rs 910. MCap India Fund was the seller in a bulk deal, offloading 2.45 lakh equity shares in TTK at an average price of Rs 910 a share.
Campus Activewear: Investment Trust Fidelity Series Emerging Markets Opportunities Fund has bought 33.39 lakh shares, Societe Generale 40.56 lakh shares and Fidelity Investment Trust Fidelity International Discovery Fund acquired 17.1 lakh shares at an average price of Rs 347 a share. TPG Growth III SF Pte Limited sold all its 2.32 crore shares in Campus at an average price of Rs 347.24 a share.
(For more bulk deals, click here)
Investors' meetings on March 27
Landmark Cars: Officials of the company will interact with Motilal Oswal Financial Services.
Sundram Fasteners: The company's officials will interact with Capital Group and Marcellus Investment Managers.
SRF: Rahul Jain, President & CFO, will meet institutional investors in the US.
Stocks in the news
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries: The pharma major has entered into an agreement to acquire a 60 percent shareholding in Vivaldis Health and Foods for Rs 143.3 crore. The remaining 40 percent shareholding will be acquired in the future on certain terms and conditions.
Bharat Electronics: The defence ministry has signed a Rs 3,000-crore contract with Bharat Electronics for the supply of integrated electronic warfare systems to the Indian Army. BEL has also received several contracts adding to Rs 1,300 crore in the last fortnight from the Indian Navy.
Alembic Pharmaceuticals: The United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) conducted an inspection at Alembic Pharmaceuticals' injectable and ophthalmic facility (F-3) at Karkhadi during March 16-24. The USFDA has issued a Form 483 with 2 minor procedural observations.
Eris Lifesciences: The pharma company completed the acquisition of nine dermatology brands from Dr Reddy's Labs for Rs 275 crore.
L&T Finance Holdings: The Reserve Bank of India has given its approval for the merger of L&T Finance, L&T Infra Credit & L&T Mutual Fund Trustee with L&T Finance Holdings. The board had in January 2023 approved the amalgamation of subsidiaries L&T Finance, L&T Infra Credit, and L&T Mutual Fund Trustee with L&T Finance Holdings via merger.
IndusInd Bank: The private sector lender has announced the appointment of Vikas Muttoo as COO & Head Member Services of its subsidiary Bharat Financial Inclusion.
BBCC India: Subsidiary HSCC (India) has received a work order worth Rs 81.19 crore from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi.
Fund Flow
Foreign institutional investors (FII) net sold shares worth Rs 1,720.44 crore, whereas domestic institutional investors (DII) purchased shares worth Rs 2,555.53 crore on March 24, National Stock Exchange's provisional data showed.
Stocks under F&O ban on NSE
The National Stock Exchange has retained Hindustan Aeronautics and Indiabulls Housing Finance on its F&O ban list for March 27. Securities banned under the F&O segment include companies where derivative contracts have crossed 95 percent of the market-wide position limit.
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