Nifty, Sensex End 6-Day Winning Streak; Reliance Industries & HDFC Bank Drags

Market Update at 4:00 PM: On Friday, August 22, Indian equity markets snapped a six-day winning streak as benchmark indices closed lower, weighed down by Reliance Industries and HDFC Bank. Investors turned cautious ahead of US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole symposium.

At the closing bell, the Nifty 50 ended down by 213.65 points or 0.85 per cent at 24,870.10, while the Sensex slipped by 693.86 points or 0.85 per cent to 81,306.85. Despite the decline, the Nifty 50 posted a weekly gain of 0.97 per cent, marking its second consecutive positive week, though it settled near the week’s low.

Financial stocks led the decline, with the Nifty Finance index falling 0.96 per cent as 17 out of its 20 constituents closed in the red. The Nifty IT index dropped 0.79 per cent but managed a 1.74 per cent weekly gain, recording its second positive week in over two months. Among the 11 key sectoral indices, only two ended in the green.

The broader markets also slipped, with the Nifty Midcap 100 down 0.14 per cent and the Nifty Smallcap 100 losing 0.26 per cent. Market breadth remained weak, as out of 3,050 stocks traded on the NSE, 1,178 advanced, 1,762 declined, and 110 remained unchanged. A total of 74 stocks touched their 52-week highs, while 26 hit 52-week lows. Additionally, 83 stocks were locked in upper circuits and 40 in lower circuits, reflecting volatility across Small-Cap and Mid-Cap stocks.

Hero MotoCorp fell 1.95 per cent after Hindustan Unilever appointed its former CEO as the new CFO. Hindustan Aeronautics traded higher during the session on securing orders for 97 Tejas fighter jets but closed flat. Texmaco Rail gained 1.22 per cent on winning an order worth Rs 103.16 crore.

The Nifty Media index emerged as the best-performing sector, advancing 0.95 per cent with Zee Entertainment Enterprises and Saregama India leading the pack. On the downside, the Nifty Metal index slipped 1.25 per cent, making it the worst performer of the day.

On the Nifty 50, Mahindra & Mahindra contributed +5.23 points, Bharti Airtel added +2.09 points, and Maruti gained +1.77 points. In contrast, HDFC Bank dragged the index by -45.95 points, Reliance Industries by -22.88 points, and ICICI Bank by -15.53 points.

Market Update at 10:30 AM: India’s equity benchmarks opened lower on Friday, halting a six-session winning streak. The decline was led by financials and IT stocks as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole symposium for policy cues.

The Nifty 50 fell 0.3 per cent to 25,015 points, while the BSE Sensex dropped 0.3 per cent to 81,793.98 as of 09:23 a.m. IST. Both indexes had gained consistently over the past six sessions, supported by expectations of a possible revision in the goods and services tax (GST) and optimism around a potential S&P sovereign rating upgrade.

At the sectoral level, eleven of the 16 major indices opened in the red. Heavyweight financial stocks under Nifty 50 slipped 0.4 per cent. IT stocks, which had advanced 3 per cent in the last three sessions, edged lower by 0.1 per cent.

Market participants are closely tracking Powell’s remarks later in the day for clarity on the US interest rate outlook, which could impact foreign portfolio investments into Indian equities, including Large-Cap and mid-cap companies. 

Pre-Market Update at 7:30 AM: On Friday, August 22, benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty 50 are likely to open on a cautious note, tracking mixed global market cues. Investors remain watchful ahead of US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium. As of 7:12 AM, the GIFT Nifty was trading near 25,095, down 10 points from its previous close.

On Thursday, August 21, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) turned net buyers, purchasing equities worth Rs 1,246.51 crore after selling in the last two sessions. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) continued their strong momentum, with net buying worth Rs 2,546.27 crore, marking their 33rd straight session of inflows.

Indian equities extended their winning streak to six sessions on Thursday. The Sensex gained 0.17 per cent to close at 82,000.71, while the Nifty 50 moved up 0.13 per cent to settle at 25,083.75. Over the last six sessions, Sensex advanced 2.2 per cent and Nifty gained 2.4 per cent. Large-cap stocks outperformed, while mid-cap stocks slipped 0.4 per cent and small-cap stocks closed flat. Gains were supported by banking shares, optimism around GST reform measures, and an upgrade in India’s sovereign rating by S&P.

Japan’s core inflation slowed for the second consecutive month in July but remained above the Bank of Japan’s 2 per cent target. The nationwide core consumer price index (CPI) rose 3.1 per cent in July year-on-year, compared with 3.3 per cent in June.

Wall Street closed lower on Thursday as investors braced for potentially hawkish commentary from Fed Chair Powell. The Dow fell 152.81 points or 0.34 per cent to 44,785.50, the S&P 500 slipped 25.61 points or 0.40 per cent to 6,370.17, and the Nasdaq dropped 72.55 points or 0.34 per cent to 21,100.31.

The S&P Global flash Composite PMI rose to 55.4 in August from 55.1 in July, marking the strongest level since December, supported by manufacturing recovery. Weekly jobless claims increased by 11,000 to 235,000, the sharpest rise in three months. Meanwhile, existing home sales rose 2.0 per cent to 4.01 million units in July, up 0.8 per cent on a yearly basis.

The US dollar index stood at 98.61, heading for a 0.7 per cent weekly gain after two weeks of losses. Gold prices were stable at USD 3,338.44 per troy ounce, with traders awaiting Powell’s speech for policy cues. Brent crude futures traded above USD 67 per barrel and WTI above USD 63.5, both on course for their first weekly gain in three weeks, supported by firm US demand and geopolitical concerns.

For today, PG Electroplast and RBL Bank remain on the F&O ban list.

Disclaimer: The article is for informational purposes only and not investment advice.