Indian stock markets opened with gains on Thursday as the momentum building for a year-end rally.
The Nifty 50 index opened at 23,775.80 points, gaining 48.15 points or 0.2 percent, while the BSE Sensex index opened at 78,557.28 points, rising by 84.41 points or 0.11 percent. Both the indices gained around 0.5 per cent soon after the opening.
At 10:05 am, Sensex was trading 118.57 points up at 78,591.44, whereas Nifty was trading 41.70 points higher at 23,769.35,
Experts stated that market investors are still optimistic about a year-end rally in the indices as 2024 draws to a close. However, market sentiments remain weak, and with only four trading sessions left, hopes rest on a rally that traditionally starts at the end of the year and extends into the early days of January.
Ajay Bagga, Banking and Market Expert told ANI “Many equity bulls are pinning their hopes on what’s known as the “Santa Claus Rally” in which stocks rise during the final five trading sessions of a year and the first two of the new one. Indian markets are dull and were dull on Tuesday. However, some window dressing for the year end will come in over the next four trading days left”.
In the sectoral indices, momentum was building for the rally as all sectors showed upward movement and opened in the green, except the Nifty Realty sector, which opened in the red. Nifty Private Bank and Bank Nifty led the gains at the opening.
“Technically speaking, the 23880 – 24070 area offers resistance while support lies between 23500 and 23640. Some traders are looking for a larger bounce toward 24000 as the window that covers the “Santa Claus effect” gets underway. Options trends at Tuesday’s close showed that implied volatility for nearby OTM calls set to expire on Jan 2nd” said Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research, Axis Securities.
In the Nifty 50 list, 32 stocks opened in the green, while six declined, and 12 remained unchanged during the opening session.
The top performers in the Nifty 50 list include BPCL, ICICI Bank, Shriram Finance, and Hindalco, while Power Grid and HDFC Life emerged as the top losers.
Elsewhere in Asian stocks, markets reflected somnolence. Shares advanced in Japan and Taiwan but edged lower in China, while financial markets in Australia and Hong Kong remained closed for the Christmas break. At the time of filing this report, the Nikkei 225 was up by 0.24 percent, while the Taiwan Weighted Index gained 0.43 percent. (ANI)
