India's Nifty holds 24000 as IT selling eases and earnings beat
Indian equities recovered from session lows to hold key technical levels, supported by moderating foreign outflows from the IT sector and better-than-expected early first-quarter earnings.
Indian equities staged a strong intraday recovery to finish with modest gains, with the Nifty index successfully defending the 24,000 support level. The benchmark rebounded towards 24,200, keeping the broader technical sentiment bullish. Market breadth reflected this underlying strength, with 1,776 stocks advancing against 1,557 declining out of 3,442 traded on the NSE on July 13.
The advance was largely driven by an encouraging start to the domestic first-quarter earnings season. Early corporate results have surpassed expectations, indicating that anticipated earnings downgrades for the quarter may be less severe than analysts previously feared. “Indian market valuations appear more reasonable, indicating a strong start to the Q1 earnings season,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments.
The IT sector, a significant driver of recent index volatility, showed distinct signs of stabilization. Foreign institutional investors have moderated their selling in Indian IT stocks. This decoupling is notable given that global markets continue to adjust to fears of an AI-led valuation bubble. “The negative impact on Indian IT stocks has eased in recent weeks,” Nair said, noting this “could support a future shift in fund flows to India.”
Geopolitical risks and commodity price movements also favored the bullish tilt. Participants largely overlooked escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz. Instead, the market took comfort from an intraday moderation in crude oil prices, which alleviates inflationary pressures on the Indian economy.
Capital rotation was evident in the day's turnover and volume leaders. Kalyan Jewellers dominated the NSE in value terms with 7,892 crore rupees traded, followed by Tata Consultancy Services at 2,678 crore rupees and Infosys at 2,300 crore rupees. In volume terms, Vodafone Idea led the pack with 23.45 crore shares changing hands, followed by Kalyan Jewellers at 15.45 crore shares.
Buying interest concentrated in specific technology and retail names, including Newgen Software, Sonata Software, and Pine Labs. Conversely, J&K Bank, Siemens Energy India, and Ather Energy faced significant selling pressure. At the extremes of the market, Vedanta fell to a 52-week low, while Aegis Vopak Terminal, JSW Infrastructure, Welspun India, and Paytm registered 52-week highs.
