India’s benchmark Nifty 50 stood at 24,195.60 shortly before 1 pm on Tuesday, March 10, a gain of 167.55 points, or 0.70 per cent, from Monday’s close of 24,028.05. It had opened at 24,280.80.
Two things drove the early move, according to The Hindu BusinessLine: easing geopolitical tensions and a sharp pullback in global crude oil prices. Both set off a gap-up open, and the recovery carried into the afternoon.
The BSE Sensex, at 12.50 pm, traded at ₹77,991.20. That was up ₹425.04, or 0.55 per cent, from a previous close of ₹77,566.16.
Autos on top, IT behind
Nifty Auto led all sectoral indices with a gain of 2.21 per cent. Nifty Pharma also added to the session’s upside. Nifty IT lagged, shedding 0.74 per cent.
Elsewhere, Nifty Bank rose 1.41 per cent to 56,808.45 and Nifty Financial Services gained 1.69 per cent to 26,495.25. Midcap and smallcap gauges did well too: the Nifty Midcap 100 added 1.29 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 advanced 1.72 per cent to 16,409.45.
Shriram Finance was the biggest gainer on the Nifty 50, surging 6.53 per cent to ₹1,051.70. InterGlobe Aviation, which runs IndiGo, rose 3.26 per cent to ₹4,375.00, and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories gained 2.78 per cent to ₹1,322.80. Tata Motors (TMPV) added 2.20 per cent to ₹339.30.
Infosys fell hardest, down 2.26 per cent at ₹1,285.30. Tech Mahindra declined 1.41 per cent and Tata Consultancy Services shed 1.40 per cent to ₹2,491.90. Reliance Industries slipped 1.11 per cent to ₹1,408.20.
Breadth and technical levels
On the BSE, 2,995 stocks advanced and 1,014 declined, out of 4,184 traded. Fifty-three hit 52-week highs and 170 touched 52-week lows. Another 152 stocks were in upper circuit, with 144 in lower circuit.
Analysts at SBI Securities see support for the Nifty in the 24,120-24,150 zone and resistance between 24,350 and 24,380. A break under 24,100 could drag the index toward the 23,980-23,950 zone, they said, while a sustained push past 24,380 might lift it to 24,500.
Options data showed heavy call writing at the 24,300 and 24,400 strikes and big put open interest at 24,200, then 24,100. The Nifty’s Put-Call Ratio was 1.1, and the advance-decline ratio 39:11. For the Sensex, support was put at 77,800 and resistance at 78,600.
Sources
Sources
- Nifty holds 24,200 at midday; Auto and Pharma lead gains as IT drags
- Market Today: Sensex Below 77,500; Nifty Near 24,200 as Crude Oil…
