The Indian benchmark indices managed to eke out minor gains on April 20 with support from auto, capital goods and power stocks. The Sensex closed up 64.55 points, or 0.11%, percent higher at 59,632.35, and the Nifty was up 5.7 points, or 0.03%, at 17,624.50.
After a flat start, the market witnessed some buying but was unable to build momentum and moved in a small range.
Stocks and Sectors
NTPC, Adani Ports, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto and Asian Paints were among the top gainers on the Nifty, while losers were Divis Labs, Eicher Motors, HUL, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories and JSW Steel.
Among sectors, the pharma index was down 1 percent and the realty index 0.5 percent. Buying was seen in the capital goods, power, infra and banking names.
The BSE midcap and smallcap indices ended flat note.
ITC, Wonderla Holidays, VA Tech Wabag, SML Isuzu, Oriental Hotels, Kamat Hotels, NCC, were among the 100 stocks that touched their 52-week highs on the BSE.
A short buildup was seen in TVS Motor Company, Dalmia Bharat and Divis Laboratories, while a long build-up was seen in Page Industries, City Union Bank and Cummins India.
| Index | Prices | Change | Change% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sensex | 59,632.35 | 64.55 | +0.11% |
| Nifty 50 | 17,624.45 | 5.70 | +0.03% |
| Nifty Bank | 42,269.50 | 115.50 | +0.27% |
| Biggest Gainer | Prices | Change | Change% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tata Motors | 476.80 | 7.40 | +1.58% |
| Biggest Loser | Prices | Change | Change% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Divis Labs | 3,203.10 | -139.50 | -4.17% |
| Best Sector | Prices | Change | Change% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nifty Infra | 5192.40 | 14.50 | +0.28% |
| Worst Sector | Prices | Change | Change% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nifty Pharma | 12485.30 | -140.00 | -1.11% |
Among individual stocks, a volume spike of more than 400 percent was seen in Delta Corp, CONCOR and Balrampur Chini Mills.
Outlook for April 21
Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities
Markets ended the 3-day losing streak on selective buying in financials, telecom and utility stocks. The market had run up sharply over the past week or so, but with FIIs turning sellers in the last few sessions and global central banks signalling more hawkish bets going ahead, traders are maintaining a cautious stance.
Technically, the market is witnessing a non-directional activity near the 200-day SMA (Simple Moving Average) and is also holding a lower top formation on intraday charts.
Any fresh uptrend is possible only after the dismissal of 17,700 level and above the same the index could move up till 17,800-17,825. On the flip side, below 17,700 the weak sentiment is likely to continue till 17,550-17,500 levels.
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