This is how analysts read the market pulse:
Ajit Mishra, Senior Vice President – Research at Religare Broking said sentiment weakened as traders reacted to heavy selling in information technology stocks and mixed global developments. “Strong US jobs data reduced expectations of upcoming Federal Reserve rate cuts, which weighed on global risk assets and contributed to the domestic market downturn. As a result, multiple intraday rebound attempts held up,” Mishra said.
According to him, the downside could be limited due to strength in other key sectors, with Nifty holding the 25,600-25,700 zone. On the upside, the 26,000 level will remain a major hurdle, he added.
He advised investors to take a selective, stock-specific approach and follow strict risk management until the index resumes its upward trend.
American markets
Wall Street stocks advanced early Thursday ahead of key U.S. inflation data that is expected to inform the Federal Reserve’s upcoming interest rate decisions.
Stocks moved sideways after solid U.S. employment data on Wednesday, which offered encouraging signs for the economy but likely reduced the chances of upcoming rate cuts.
The broad S&P 500 rose 0.4 percent to 6,971.24, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.3 percent to 23,149.97.
Among individual businesses, McDonald’s posted a 0.9 percent gain after reporting strong fourth-quarter results following successful holiday-focused marketing campaigns around low prices.
European markets
Most major European indices were trading broadly positive around 2:07 PM GMT (7:52 PM India), while Germany’s DAX was up around 1.4% at this time. Meanwhile, France’s CAC 40, Stoxx 600 and Britain’s FTSE 100 were up up to 1%. was trading flat around this time. However, the Spanish IBEX fell 0.32%.
Technical view
Deciphering the charts, Bajaj Broking said the index has formed a bearish candle with a lower high and a lower low, indicating profit booking at higher levels around 26,000 levels. Stock-specific moves are likely to remain in focus as the quarterly earnings season draws to a close, this broker said.
“Going forward, the index is likely to consolidate within the 25,500-26,000 range. Only a move above 26,000 levels will open an upside opening towards the key resistance area of 26,200-26,300 in the coming sessions. The overall outlook remains positive and the current breather should be seen as buying opportunities. The immediate support is placed at 25,500-25,400, which is in line with the breakout area from last week and the 20-day EMA,” Bajaj Broking said in a note.
Most active stocks in terms of turnover
State Bank of India (SBI, Rs 842 crore), Bajaj Finance (Rs 434 crore), ICICI Bank (Rs 357 crore), APL Apollo (Rs 328 crore), ICICI AMC (Rs 246 crore), Godrej Properties (Rs 235 crore) and Reliance Industries (RIL, Rs 231 crore), were among the most active stocks on BSE in terms of value. Higher activity in a counter in terms of value can help identify the counters with the highest trading turnover per day.
Most active stocks by volume
Vodafone Idea (shares traded: Rs 4.17 crore), SpiceJet (shares traded: Rs 1.24 crore), SBI (shares traded: Rs 70.64 lakh), Billionbrains Garage Ventures (Groww, shares traded: Rs 69.91 lakh), YES Bank (shares traded: Rs 66.17 lakh), Eternal (shares traded: Rs 64.92 lakh) and Punjab & Sind Bank (shares traded: 54.33 lakh) were among the most actively traded stocks on BSE by volume.
Stocks that show buying interest
Lenskart Solutions, Crown Lifters, Avanti Feeds, Apex, Ratnamani Metals & Tubes, Yatra Online and Sky Gold and Diamonds were among the stocks that witnessed strong buying interest from market participants.
52 Week High
Today, 140 stocks hit their 52-week highs, while 111 stocks fell to their 52-week lows. Amagi Media Labs, APL Apollo, Apex, Avanti Feeds, Bajaj Auto, Bajaj Consumer, Sharda Cropchem and ONGC were among those that hit 52-week highs.
Stocks see selling pressure
Among the large cap names were Tech Mahindra, TCS and Infosys. Other stocks that witnessed significant selling pressure were Dhruv Consultancy Services, Network People Services Technologies, Vodafone Idea, Hindustan Unilever and LG Electronics.
Sentiment meter favors bears
Actions in heavyweights like Infosys, Infosys, TCS and RIL dragged the markets the most. In broader markets, breadth remained negative. Of the 4,368 stocks traded on the BSE on Thursday, February 12, 1,634 stocks witnessed gains, 2,582 declined while 152 stocks remained unchanged.
(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions expressed by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)
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