Sensex Today Live: ‘Positive momentum likely’
“Indian equities are expected to regain their positive momentum, supported by renewed buying interest and lower energy prices. Brent crude is at near four-month levels, as vessel movement through the Strait of Hormuz is witnessing steady improvement. Additionally, the southwest monsoon has resumed its advance across the country, improving investor sentiment. Domestic markets staged a strong recovery on Wednesday following the previous session’s profit booking, with the Nifty 50 gaining 0.8% to close at 24,021. Sentiment was supported by optimism surrounding the near-finalisation of the India-US interim trade agreement ahead of the 24 July tariff deadline, favourable global cues, and softer crude oil prices.
Buying interest was particularly visible in Information Technology and private banking stocks, with the Nifty IT index gaining 2% following the recent correction and Bank Nifty advanced 1.7% after comments from the RBI Governor reinforced expectations that domestic rate hikes are unlikely in the near term. Market volatility also eased, with India VIX declining 4.4%. Broader markets participated in the rally, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Smallcap 100 indices gaining 0.1% and 0.4%, respectively. Sectors such as Financials are likely to remain in focus after the RBI issued additional clarifications on the FCNR(B) deposit scheme to encourage greater participation by banks and overseas investors.
Oil sensitive sectors like OMCs, aviation would also be in focus as they stand to benefit from lower crude oil prices. On the commodities front, precious metals remained under pressure amid easing geopolitical tensions. Gold has declined 12% during the June quarter, marking its sharpest quarterly fall since Dec’16, while silver has corrected 17.6%, its steepest decline since June’22. Meanwhile, the government expects credit demand of nearly ₹2 lakh crore under the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) 5.0.
The scheme is intended to provide additional liquidity support to businesses facing potential disruptions from geopolitical uncertainties and supply-chain challenges. Going forward, investors will closely monitor crude oil prices, the progress of the southwest monsoon, developments in US-Iran negotiations and the finalisation of the India-US trade agreement. Any further progress on geopolitical and trade-related fronts, coupled with stable energy prices and sustained foreign inflows, could provide additional support to domestic equities,” says Siddhartha Khemka – Head of Research, Wealth Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.
