Indian benchmark indices are likely to open on a flat note, hinted SGX Nifty. On the Singapore Exchange, Nifty futures were mildly in the green, up 9 points, at the 17,809 level. Markets extended their rally on Wednesday, ending higher after trading with cuts for most of the session. Nifty gained 42 points to settle at 17,754, while Sensex added 21%, to close at 60,348.
“The global market has fallen back into the grip of uncertainty as the Fed chief signalled the possibility of a prolonged and faster rate hike, contradicting a dovish comment made by another Fed official last week. The market now anticipates a 50 bps rate hike, which has pushed the dollar index to a three-month high. However, a strong recovery was seen in the domestic market towards the end of the day, which kept the bulls on the move,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.
US Treasury Yields
U.S. Treasury yields wavered on Wednesday. The two-year yields notched their third straight gain while benchmark 10-year notes last fell in price to yield 3.9795%, from 3.975% on Tuesday. The 30-year bond last rose in price to yield 3.8803%, from 3.888% on Tuesday, according to Reuters.
Asian Markets
Stocks in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Thursday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 traded up by 0.55%, and South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.23% in its first hour of trade. China’s Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Component traded flat, lower by 0.09% and higher by 0.06%, respectively. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index traded in the positive territory, gaining 0.32% in trade.
Crude Oil
Oil prices were largely steady on Thursday. U.S. crude held at $76.66 a barrel. Brent crude was largely unchanged at $82.67 per barrel.
FII/DII Data
Foreign institutional investors (FII) net bought shares worth Rs 3,671.56 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DII) net sold equities worth Rs 937.8 crore on 8 March, according to the provisional data available on the NSE.
F&O Ban
The National Stock Exchange has Balrampur Chini on its F&O ban list for 9 March. According to the NSE, stocks are prohibited in the F&O sector when they have exceeded 95% of the market-wide position limit (MWPL). During the F&O ban period, no new positions are permitted for F&O contracts in that stock.
Technical View
“A long bull candle was formed on the daily chart with a long lower shadow. Technically, this pattern indicates a buy on dips opportunity in the market. After reacting down from a crucial overhead resistance of 17,800 levels (opening downside gap of 22nd Feb and weekly 10 and 20 period EMA) on Monday, the market subsequently showing upside bounces post small correction could be a positive indication.
“The market could make an attempt to retest the key resistance again around 17,800 levels in the short term. Such repeated testing of the hurdle could eventually result in decisive upside breakout of the hurdle in the near term. Immediate support is at 17,600 levels” said Nagaraj Shetti, Technical Research Analyst, HDFC Securities.
Levels to Watch
“Volume profile indicates Index has a strong support around 17,450-17,550 zone. Coming to the OI Data, on the call side, the highest OI observed at 17,900 followed by 18,000 strike prices while on the put side, the highest OI is at 17,600 strike price. On the other hand, Bank Nifty has support at 41,000-41,200 while resistance is placed at 42,300-42,500 range,” said Devan Mehata, Equity Research Analyst, Choice Broking.