Sensex and Nifty closed flat, recovery in IT stocks

Mumbai: Benchmark equity indices closed unchanged on Monday. They recovered from their intra-day lows as gains in information technology stocks helped offset weakness in FMCG and metal stocks.
The Sensex closed 47.01 points, or 0.06 percent, higher at 77,616.40, while the Nifty gained 4.10 points, or 0.02 percent, to close at 24,211.
Commenting on the Nifty’s technical outlook, experts said the 24,300–24,400 region is now the immediate resistance zone. The upper end of this band is very close to the 200-day exponential moving average (EMA), making it a major hurdle for the index.
An analyst said, “A sustained breakout above this band will strengthen bullish momentum and could pave the way for a move towards the 24,500–24,600 region.” The analyst said, “On the downside, the psychological level of 24,000 remains a crucial support zone and will be essential for maintaining a broad-based recovery trend.”
This recovery was driven by buying in frontline IT stocks, with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), HCLTech, and Tech Mahindra emerging as top gainers on the Nifty index.
The broader market also closed on a positive note, although gains were modest. The Nifty Midcap index rose 0.01 percent, while the Nifty Smallcap index rose 0.03 percent.
Among sectoral indices, the Nifty IT index outperformed the market, supported by gains in large technology stocks.
Conversely, the Nifty FMCG and Nifty Metal indices were the biggest laggards.
Despite a subdued finish, the benchmark indices managed to recover from the day’s lows as late buying in IT stocks helped maintain the market’s positive momentum.
Meanwhile, the rupee weakened by around 0.26 per cent to trade at 95.60 as a rise of over 4 per cent in crude oil prices raised concerns over India’s import bill and put pressure on the domestic currency.

According to analysts, “Technically, the rupee may trade in the range of 95.20–96.00 soon.”