Sensex, Nifty look set to continue upward march this week; 5 things to know before opening bell

After having gained 1% each last week, domestic benchmark equity indices might look to continue their upward march on Monday. S&P BSE Sensex now sits at 49,206 while the 50-stock NSE Nifty is at 14,823. Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange were up more than 100 points, hint at a positive start for domestic equities. Technically, Nifty close above the resistance levels on Friday, which could see the index surge higher and reclaim 15,000 in the coming sessions. On the fundamental side, Dalal Street’s movement is expected to be influenced by covid-19 and vaccination drive.

Global watch: On Friday, Wall Street closed with gains as bulls continued to assert control on US equity markets. NASDAQ soared 0.88% while S&P 500 was up 0.74% and Dow Jones zoomed 0.66%. Asia peers on Monday morning were trading mixed. Shanghai Composite was down in the negative while Hang Seng, TOPIX, Nikkei 225, KOSPI, and KOSDAQ were all sitting with gains.

Technical take: On the weekly chart, Nifty formed a reasonable bull candle, according to Nagaraj Shetti, Technical Research Analyst, HDFC Securities. He added that markets could move towards 15,000 in the coming sessions. 

Support and resistance levels: Although the trend is positive for Nifty, analysts believe that the index could face resistance near 15,000. “Nifty needs to break above 15,050-15,000 if the rally has to continue,” said Manish Shah, Founder, Niftytriggers. “The consolidation in Nifty is significant and if break above 15,050-15,000  materialises we should see a sharp rally in the weeks to come. If Nifty slips below 14,650 expect some decline to the 14,300 zone,” he added. 

FII and DII trades: On Friday, Foreign Institutional Investors (FII) were net sellers of domestic securities, pulling away Rs 1,142 crore. Meanwhile, Domestic Institutional Investors (DII) were net buyers of domestic equities, pumping in Rs 1,468 crore. Last week, FIIs were net sellers of domestic securities on four out of five days.

Results today: Zydus Wellness, Chambal Fertilisers & Chemicals, Escorts Finance, Dai-Ichi Karkaria, Ganges Securities, HFCL, HSIL, PPAP Automotive, Inspirisys Solutions, Intellect Design Arena, JMC Projects (India), Nutricircle, Oriental Aromatics, Onesource Ideas Venture, Paushak, Sangam Renewables, Satia Industries, and Suryalakshmi Cotton Mills are some of the firms that will report their quarterly results today.