Mid-day Mood | Sensex, Nifty hit new highs; auto stocks lead the rally

The Sensex and the Nifty started the week with a bang, hitting fresh lifetime highs on April 8 morning, tracking positive cues from the US and other Asian markets and expectations of a stronger earnings season at home. Gains in heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) and auto stocks aided the rally.

Buying was also seen in the broader market. The BSE midcap index gained 0.5 percent and the smallcap index was up 0.3 percent.

"Going ahead, the global developments over the extended weekend might set the immediate tone, and hence, a close tab is required to keep on global bourses," said Sameet Chavan, Head Research, Technical and Derivative - Angel One. "Also, looking at the bullish biases, the domestic market looks prominent to continue its upward trajectory until any aberrations occur on any front."

Around noon, the Sensex was up 395.15 points, or 0.53 percent, at 74,643.37, and the Nifty 119.20 points, or 0.53 percent, at 22,632.90. About 1,812 shares advanced, 1,469 declined and 109 remained unchanged.

Sectoral Trend

Barring Nifty IT and PSU bank, all sectoral indices were in the positive territory. Nifty realty and auto were the top sectoral gainers, rising more than 2 percent each.

Nifty IT traded flat, while the PSU bank index was down 0.6 percent.

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Fundamental View

"Optimism prevails on Dalal Street as investors prioritise the anticipation of strong Q4 corporate profits in India over the Fed's rate-cut plans," said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities.

TCS' earnings, which  will kickoff of the result season on April 12, are pivotal, he said.

Technical View

The Nifty can find support at 22,400 followed by 22,350 and 22,300, Deven Mehata, Research Analyst at Choice Broking, said. On the higher side, 22,600 can be the immediate resistance followed by 22,650 and 22,700.

Key Nifty gainers

Eicher Motors, Maruti Suzuki, M&M, RIL and Shriram Finance

Key Nifty losers

Adani Ports, Apollo Hospital, Nestle, Adani Enterprises and Sun Pharmaceutical

Key Sensex gainers

Maruti Suzuki, M&M, RIL, Axis Bank and JSW Steel

Key Sensex losers

Nestle, Sun Pharmaceutical, Wipro, Bajaj Finance and HDFC Bank

Stock moves

FSN E-commerce: Shares of Nykaa parent surged 5 percent in the early trade after the company, in a business update, said it expected strong growth in Q4.

Bandhan Bank: The stock tanked 9 percent in the opening trade following chief executive officer and managing director Chandra Shekhar Ghosh's decision to step down.

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