On market performance, Santosh Meena, Head of Research, Swastika Investmart Ltd said, "The recent truncated trading week witnessed heightened market activity and volatility, culminating in a second consecutive week of losses, primarily driven by weakness in the banking sector. Profit booking affected several midcap and smallcap stocks, though certain sectors exhibited resilience." While giving an outlook this week, Meena said, "The upcoming week is poised to be pivotal, marked by a series of significant events, with the budget taking center stage. However, the finance minister's indication of a modest, vote-on-account budget suggests a lack of extravagant announcements." Also, Meena said, another critical event to watch is the outcome of the US Federal Reserve's policy meeting scheduled for January 31st, which could provide insights into the potential timing of interest rate cuts. Concurrently, ongoing Q3 earnings releases are contributing to substantial stock price movements, with numerous companies slated to announce their results in the upcoming week.
Further, the analyst said, foreign institutional investor activity remains a focal point, given their substantial net sales exceeding Rs. 35,000 crore in the Indian equity market this month. Beyond domestic factors, the market will be influenced by the global landscape, including geopolitical developments and movements in US bond yields, the dollar index, and crude oil prices. Last week, on January 25, Sensex closed at 70,700.67, down by 0.51%, while Nifty ended at 21,352.60, lower by 101.35 points or 0.47%. Read more at:
