As we navigate through the last week of March 2024, market investors brace themselves for volatility. Influenced by global trends and the expiration of derivatives, stock markets are expected to witness a roller-coaster ride of sorts.
1. Understanding the Market Scenario
Markets are anticipated to be swayed by the global trends and trading activities of foreign investors. The week is holiday-shortened with markets remaining closed on Monday for Holi and Friday for Good Friday. Market analysts predict lower trading volumes owing to the reduced number of trading sessions. However, they caution about potential volatility due to the expiry of monthly derivatives on Thursday and the approaching end of the financial year.
Investors are also expected to keep a close watch on factors such as the US GDP data, fluctuations in global oil prices, and the rupee-dollar trend.
2. Performance of Key Indices
Last week, the BSE benchmark rose by 0.25%, and the Nifty increased by 0.33%. This week, these key indices could encounter volatile trends due to the influence of global trends and foreign investors’ trading activity. The BSE Sensex, one of the major market indices, is expected to be influenced by these global trends. With the markets expected to be closed for two days in the week, the Sensex trends can be quite volatile. The NSE Nifty, another significant index, is also anticipated to face turbulence due to the monthly derivatives expiry and the end of the financial year.
3. Key Influencers in the Market
Several factors and entities play crucial roles in shaping the market trends. They include:
FIIs have a significant impact on the markets. Their offloading of shares and a depreciating rupee hint at potential challenges ahead for equity markets. Despite these hurdles, FIIs have shown a resurgence in investment activity, injecting over ₹38,000 crore in March, driven by favourable global and domestic economic conditions. The domestic economic conditions in FY24 also indicate an uptick in the block deal space with transactions totaling around ‚1 1.7 lakh crore. This is slightly lower than FY23, driven by promoters and private equity firms utilizing this window for selling stakes or existing holdings. March has witnessed significant block deals, including BAT Plc selling a stake in ITC, Rakesh Gangwal offloading a stake in Interglobe Aviation, and Tata Sons divesting a stake in TCS.
4. Stock Market Updates for March 26, 2024
On March 26, 2024, several companies made headlines due to their market activities and announcements. Here are some key highlights:
Several fund houses released their recommendations for various companies. These included HSBC maintaining a ‘Buy’ on Bajaj Auto and CLSA maintaining an ‘Outperform’ on Tata Motors. Citi also maintained a ‘Buy’ on Indigo while upgrading its target price. Several companies made significant announcements. Exide’s subsidiary Chloride Metals faced a ₹133-crore income tax demand for FY22-23. PayTM announced the resignation of Praveen Sharma from the post of SVP – Business of One 97 Communications. Schaeffler re-appointed Harsha Kadam as the company’s MD & CEO for three years. Mankind Pharma made headlines with news of a block deal that involved Beige Ltd selling a 2.9% stake in a block deal worth nearly 2450 crores.
5. Global Market Trends
Asian stocks witnessed a mixed trend. The Japanese Nikkei 225 index saw a minor increase, while the broader TOPIX showed a marginal gain. South Korea’s KOSPI showed a firm upward trend. However, Australia’s S&P;/ASX 200 traded flat. US stocks retreated after the S&P; 500 Index reached multiple record highs, causing concerns about rapid market advancement. All three major US stock indexes closed lower with the Dow Jones Industrial Average experiencing the largest percentage decline.European shares opened slightly higher, led by gains in materials stocks. However, investors were on edge ahead of key US inflation data that could provide fresh clues on when the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates.