Mid-day Mood | Nifty, Sensex trade flat as IT, Media stocks drag; focus on FOMC minutes

Globally, investors await the release of US FOMC meeting minutes as this would provide some insights into the US Fed’s future direction.

The benchmark Sensex and Nifty indices were trading flat on February 21 after the Nifty hit an all-time high of 22,248 in the morning deals. Correction in Media and IT stocks dragged the headline indices down by noon, but gains in metal stocks offset the losses.

According to market observers, the BSE market cap touching a record high of $4.7 trillion is showing strength in the market.

Analysts expect market sentiment to strengthen further as the prospect of a pre-election rally is quite strong. Globally, investors await the release of US FOMC meeting's minutes later on Wednesday as that would provide some insights into the US Fed’s future direction.

At 11:45 am, the Sensex was up 64.59 points or 0.09 percent at 73,122, and the Nifty was up 16.00 points or 0.07 percent at 22,21. About 1,589 shares advanced, 1,625 declined, and 74 were unchanged.

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Sectoral trends

Sectorally, Nifty IT led the losses, falling up to 1 percent. Healthcare, Pharma, Bank, Energy and Auto indices were also trading in the red. On the flipside, Nifty Realty and Nifty Metal led the gains, jumping over 2 percent. Nifty PSU Bank, FMCG and Infra stocks also gained intraday.

Fundamental view

The big emerging market worry of rising bond yields in the US is not impacting India since FIIs have been forced to reduce their selling since they are being completely neutralised by sustained DII buying assisted by retail exuberance, according to  V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.

"This resilient domestic buying is providing the main support to the ongoing rally in the market, and the strong performance of the economy and improving corporate earnings are solid fundamental support to the market," he said.

"The fact that the fairly valued large private banks are now contributing to the rally is a positive signal. This has the potential to sustain. But the irrational exuberance in pockets of the broader market is unlikely to be sustained. Retail investors should not be carried away by this exuberance," he added.

Technical view

"Bollinger bands have begun to expand, and prices are trading along the upper band indicating that the positive price action is likely to continue. The hourly momentum indicator still has a negative crossover, which is a point of worry, however, we shall assign more weightage to the price action and continue to ride the upmove," said Jatin Gedia – Technical Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

"In terms of levels, 22,460 – 22,500 is the immediate hurdle zone while 22,000 – 21,950 shall act as a crucial support zone. We expect the Bank Nifty to continue with the momentum and target levels of 48,600," Gedia added.

Key Nifty gainers

Tata Steel, JSW Steel, Hindalco, SBI and Adani Enterprises

Key Nifty losers

Power Grid, Infosys, BPCL, Hero MotoCorp and HCL Technologies

Key Sensex gainers

Tata Steel, JSW Steel, SBI, Bharti Airtel and ICICI Bank

Key Sensex losers

Power Grid, Infosys, HCL Tech, Axis Bank and Wipro

Also Read | GQG Partners' Rajiv Jain bullish on PSU stocks, regrets not buying LIC in 2023

Stock moves

Zee Entertainment Enterprises: The stock tanked almost 10 percent after Bloomberg reported that Sebi has found that about Rs 241 million might have been diverted from the company.

Tourism Finance Corporation: The stock gained 5 percent after investor Aditya Kumar Halwasiya picked up 13 percent stake in the company.

Union Bank: The PSU Bank stock jumped 6 percent after the PSU lender announced a Rs 3,000-crore qualified institutional placement (QIP) at a floor price of Rs 142.78 per share.

Devyani International: The stock soared as 5.3 crore shares, representing a 4.4 percent stake, in the quick service restaurant operator changed hands in a block deal.

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