Taking Stock | Market snaps 5-day losing streak; Sensex up 367 points, Nifty above 17,250

The Indian benchmark indices made a smart recovery on January 25 to close higher on low-level buying, snapping a five-day losing streak in a session marked by wild swings.

At close, the Sensex was up 366.64 points, or 0.64 percent, at 57,858.15, and the Nifty was up 128.90 points, or 0.75 percent, at 17,278.

The market again opened gap-down amid mixed global cues as investors remained cautious ahead of the outcome of the two-day Federal Reserve meeting but as the day progressed, it trimmed losses to end in the green.

The market will be shut on January 26 on account of Republic Day.

“After a week-long consolidation, domestic indices took a breather supported by low-level buying. Western markets also supported, staging a recovery following correction in oil markets and as uncertainties over Fed policy and geopolitical tensions eased,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Volatility, however, is expected to linger as investors await the Fed’s final policy statement, providing clarity on the timeline of rate hikes, he added.

Maruti Suzuki, Axis Bank, SBI, IndusInd Bank and UPL were the top Nifty gainers, while losers included Wipro, Bajaj Finserv, Titan Company, Infosys and Tech Mahindra.

Except IT, all other sectoral indices ended in the green, with Nifty PSU bank, FMCG, auto and bank rising 1-4 percent.

The broader indices outperformed the main indices. The BSE midcap index gained a percent, while the smallcap index closed 0.81 percent higher.

Stocks and sectors

On the BSE, all sectoral indices ended in the green barring IT. Auto, bank, power, realty, FMCG, capital goods were up 1-2 percent.

Long build-up was seen in Maruti Suzuki, Bank of Baroda and Zee Entertainment Enterprises, while short build-up was seen in the Indiamart Intermesh, Deepak Nitrite and The Ramco Cements.

Among individual stocks, a volume spike of more than 1,400 percent was seen in Indiabulls Housing, Vodafone Idea and BHEL.

More than 100 stocks, including Power Grid Corporation, Maruti Suzuki and ABB India hit a 52-week high on the BSE.

Outlook for January 27

Gaurav Ratnaparkhi, Head of Technical Research, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas

On the way up, the index marginally crossed a falling trendline and paused near the 20-hour moving average. So 17,300-17,330 is the immediate resistance zone, beyond which the index can target 17,500 in the short term.

On the flip side, 17,000 will continue to act as a crucial support on a closing basis.

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities

Resistance at 17,400 may challenge the bulls, however, a decisive move above the level may take the Nifty to 17,800. On the lower end, support is visible at 17,000-16,800.

Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities

Volatility will continue to stay as concerns related to geopolitical developments, rising oil prices and US Fed’s likely move on rate hike will continue to keep investors on the edge.

The short-term formation is still on the weak side but the intraday texture suggests continuation of a pullback in the next couple of trading sessions.

For traders, 17,000 and 17,100 would be the immediate support zone and if the Nifty succeeds to trade above the same, a reversal formation could lift the index to 17,400-17,450 levels.

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