Mumbai: Indian Equity Indices Trade Flat Ahead of Budget Presentation
Mumbai, July 23, 2024 – Indian equity indices showed a muted trend on Tuesday morning as investors exercised caution ahead of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s budget presentation scheduled for 11 a.m. in Parliament.
At 9:55 a.m., the Sensex was marginally up by 35 points or 0.04 per cent, trading at 80,537, while the Nifty gained 2 points or 0.01 per cent to reach 24,511.
The midcap and smallcap segments witnessed selling pressure, with the Nifty midcap 100 index down by 109 points or 0.19 per cent at 56,515, and the Nifty smallcap 100 index slipping 105 points or 0.57 per cent to 18,457.
Sectoral indices showed a mixed performance. Auto, pharma, FMCG, and realty sectors emerged as top gainers, while IT, PSU banks, financial services, and metal sectors lagged behind.
In its Economic Survey presented on Monday, the government projected a GDP growth rate of 6.5 per cent to 7 per cent for the current financial year.
Deven Mehata, Research Analyst at Choice Broking, commented, “Nifty is likely to find support levels at 24,450, 24,400, and 24,300. Immediate resistance levels are expected at 24,600, followed by 24,800 and 25,000.”
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net buyers in the equity market, purchasing stocks worth Rs 3,444 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net sellers, offloading equities worth Rs 1,652 crore on July 22.
Investors are closely monitoring the budget announcements, particularly for cues on fiscal policy measures and sector-specific initiatives that could influence market sentiment in the near term.
