Indian stock markets began Friday on a positive note, taking cues from a rally in other Asian markets. The Nifty 50 index opened at 23,411.80 points, gaining 61.90 points or 0.27%, while the BSE Sensex rose 193.95 points or 0.25%, starting at 77,349.74.
Market experts highlighted a cautious sentiment, with upcoming Maharashtra election results likely to influence market trends over the weekend.
Ajay Bagga Banking and Market Expert said, “The Indian stock markets are expected to show cautious movement today due to mixed global and domestic cues. Maharashtra election results on Saturday will be watched by the markets from the corner of their eyes. Rising oil prices on Ukraine Russia escalation will be watched carefully”.
“The FPI sale number was disappointingly large yesterday, probably on the back of the Adani group selling. As the 5th largest economy and the 5th largest market in the world, Indian investors and Indian markets need to take such developments in their stride and not over stress,” he added.
Adani group shares extended their losses after U.S. prosecutors implicated Gautam Adani and others in a solar energy contract bribery case. Adani Green Energy saw a sharp decline of over 8% during early trading.
Among sectoral indices on the National Stock Exchange, Nifty Bank led the gains with a 0.65% rise. However, indices like Nifty FMCG, Media, Metal, and Consumer Durables opened in the red.
“With the Nifty falling to a new low for this decline, the focus is now squarely on a major node near 23,200. This area is offering supports from multiple indicators including a key Fibonacci retracement from the election day lows, a rising trendline from the October ’23 trough, a falling channel currently in play and the so-called daily Ichimoku cloud. We are also close to a time-reversal area which covers the early part of next week” said Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research, Axis Securities.
Elsewhere in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained over 1%, Taiwan’s Weighted Index rose 1.74%, and South Korea’s KOSPI climbed 1.13%. In contrast, Hong Kong and Chinese markets remained subdued.
