Sensex rises for 3rd day in row, ITC shares see biggest gain in 3 months
Stock market closing: Sensex ended 157 points higher at 58,807 while ITC shares surged 5%
Indian stock markets edged higher today to extend gains to the third day, led by a surge in ITC. After a choppy start, the 30-share BSE Sensex gained momentum in afternoon trade to end 157 points higher at 58,807 while the broader NSE Nifty climbed 0.27% to 17,516. ITC shares witnessed their best day in nearly three months and were up 4.9%.
The cigarette-to-hotel conglomerate announced its analyst meet which it will hold next week on Tuesday, December 14, 2021. Stock market participants have also been expecting of the announcements or clarity related to the conglomerate's demerger of businesses.
ITC was the top performer in the Sensex pack, followed by L&T, Asian Paints, Reliance Industries, M&M, Bajaj Finance, Dr Reddy's and Infosys. On the other hand, HDFC Bank, Titan, Nestle India, NTPC, PowerGrid and TCS were among the laggards, tumbling up to 1.67 per cent.
World stocks were mostly higher as investors monitored updates on the Omicron variant of the coronavirus amid mounting cases in many countries. Investors are keenly awaiting the US inflation data, due later this week, to gauge the Fed’s decision on rolling back economic stimulus, say analysts.
Ajit Mishra, VP - Research, Religare Broking, said markets oscillated in a range on the weekly expiry day and finally ended marginally higher.
"All eyes will be on crucial macro data (CPI and IIP)... which may further provide some direction to the markets. Meanwhile, the focus will remain on the global cues and updates regarding the new variant. We reiterate our cautious yet positive stance on the markets and suggest traders to focus on managing risk," he noted.
In the broader markets, the BSE midcap and smallcap indices ended up to 0.80 per cent higher.
“We are nearing the end of the calendar year and by next week most FIIs (foreign institutional investors) will be going on holiday, hence trading activity is expected to be very low. There might not be any large moves in either direction in the near term," Narendra Solanki, head of equity research at Anand Rathi Investment Services.
Digital payments start-up Paytm's shares moved 3% higher after its unit was given the status of a scheduled payments bank which would help them explore new business opportunities.
For Nifty, “the area of 17550-17600 level has been a significant value area in the recent past and steep decline has occurred below this area in the last two weeks. Hence, any minor weakness/consolidation from this hurdle in the next 1-2 sessions could mean a higher possibility of sharp upside breakout of the hurdle in the near term," said Nagaraj Shetti, Technical Research Analyst, HDFC Securities.
“The short term uptrend of Nifty remains intact. There is a chances of some more consolidation or minor weakness in the next 1-2 sessions before showing any decisive upside breakout of the hurdle of 17550-17600 levels soon. Immediate support is placed at 17380."
On daily charts, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities, Nifty has formed a Hammer candlestick formation which indicates indecisiveness between bulls and bears.
“The short-term formation is still on the bullish side but before any fresh breakout, the market may consolidate within the range of 17350 to 17575. However, 17350 would be the trend decider level and if the index slips below the same, the uptrend would be vulnerable," he added.
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