14620 IS THE IMMEDIATE HURDLE; 14320 IMMEDIATE SUPPORT

 

14620 IS THE IMMEDIATE HURDLE; 14320 IMMEDIATE SUPPORT

 

WORLD MARKETS

 

On Friday, Dow and S & P 500 fell 0.6% and 0.3% respectively while Nasdaq inched up 0.1% on uncertainty over Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus plan.

 

Moderate Republican senators critiqued Biden’s plan, while another Democrat lawmaker said he would oppose another coronavirus relief check to Americans. Meanwhile, Biden warned on Thursday that the U.S. would likely top 500,000 Covid-19 deaths in February.

 

IBM nosedived 10% after fourth-quarter sales missed estimates. Apple rose 1.6%, extending Thursday's upmove.

 

January PMI data from Markit and figures for existing home sales in December both beat expectations.

 

A Senate committee overwhelmingly supported former Fed Chair Janet Yellen as Biden’s Treasury secretary. If confirmed, she would be the first woman to lead the department.

 

Brent crude futures declined 60 cents, or 1.1%, to $55.50 a barrel while WTI crude futures settled 86 cents, or 1.6%, lower at $52.27 per barrel. U.S. crude inventories surprisingly rose by 4.4 million barrels in the most recent week, versus expectations for a draw of 1.2 million barrels.

 

Dollar index rose 0.1% to 90.209.  Spot gold fell 1% to $1,851.50 per ounce. 10-year Treasury yield fell to 1.086%, while that on 30-year note dipped to 1.847%.

 

Main European markets fell 0.2%-0.6%. Italy and Spain slipped 1.5% and 1.1% respectively. Eurozone flash composite PMI dropped to 47.5 January from 49.1 in December, on the back of stricter coronavirus-related lockdowns. UK's composite PMI fell to 40.6 in January from 50.4 in December and December retail sales came in at +0.3% month on month, lower than the +1.2% expected.

 

AT HOME

 

Benchmark indices nosedived 1.5% each, suffering the worst fall in a month and extending the losing streak to second straight day. Sensex settled at 48878, down 746 points while Nifty lost 218 points to finish at 14371. Nifty mid-cap and small-cap indices fell 1.2% and 0.6% respectively.  BSE Metal index and Bankex tumbled 3.8% and 3% respectively, becoming top losers among the sectoral indices while Auto index climbed 1.5%, becoming top gainer, followed by marginally higher IT and Consumer Discretionary Goods & Services indices.

 

FIIs net sold stocks, index futures and stock futures worth Rs 636 cr, 1471 cr and 467 cr respectively. DIIs were net sellers to the tune of Rs 1290 cr.

 

Rupee appreciated 2 paise to end at 72.97/$.

 

Bajaj Auto surged as various brokerages upgraded stock's target price post third quarter results, citing better outlook for exports, increased traction for premium motorcycles and attractive valuations.

 

For the week, Sensex and Nifty fell 0.4% and 0.3% respectively, with Sensex snapping 11-week winning streak.

 

OUTLOOK

 

Today morning, Hang Seng and Nikkei are up 1% and 0.4% respectively while Shanghai is off 0.3%. SGX Nifty is suggesting around 90 points higher start for our market.

 

In Friday's report we had said that 14490 continued to be immediate support, upon breach of which, 14222, the bottom made Monday, would be the crucial support to eye.

 

Nifty broke 14490 support and plunged all the way to 14357 before closing at 14372. However, the benchmark is set to open near 14450 today.

 

14620 is the immediate resistance on the hourly chart, above which, 14753, the top made during the week, would be the next hurdle.

 

20-DMA, placed around 14320, is the immediate support, upon breach of which, 14222, the bottom made during last week, would be the next important level to eye.

 

Kotak Mahindra Bank and L & T will report their quarterly earnings today.