Mumbai: Equity benchmarks closed flat amid consolidation on the first day of July series after one percent fall in last session of previous series. Healthcare, technology and fast moving consumer goods stocks supported the market whereas auto, metals, capital goods and select banks saw selling pressure.
The Sensex rose 37.25 points to 25099.92 while the Nifty reclaimed 7500 level, up 15.60 points to close at 7508.80. The broader markets gained marginally too.
The rangebound trade will continue till the Union Budget announcement (on July 10), feel experts, adding after that the market will get some direction. According to them, the Nifty's upside seems to have capped at 7700. To go beyond this level, it needs strong implementation of reforms, which will be announced in Budget, they add.
Near-term challenges like ongoing crisis in Iraq, fears of poor monsoon and expectations of weak India Inc earnings would cap market's upside for now, says Girish Pai, Director of Claritas Research. From a six month perspective, Pai doesn't see the Nifty moving much higher from 7,700 level .
However, in the next two-three years, the market is poised to give 15-20 percent return largely driven by earnings growth.
For the week, the Sensex and Nifty closed flat too but the broader markets outperformed benchmarks with the CNX Midcap and BSE Smallcap indices rising 2.7 percent each.
On Friday the buzz was healthcare and technology stocks. The BSE IT and Healthcare indices gained 2.5 percent each.
Sun Pharma shot up 4 percent after brokerage house Credit Suisse maintains outperform rating on the stock, saying Israel-based subsidiary Taro increased prices of 11 products. Even Ranbaxy, which will be a part of Sun Pharma soon, received approval from US Food and Drug Administration for Valsartan (generic version of Novartis' anti-hypertensive drug Diovan). Ranbaxy Labs shot up 5.4 percent.
Dr Reddy's Laboratories was up 1.8 percent after the company launched duloxetine delayed-release capsules in the US market on June 26. It is a therapeutic equivalent generic version of Cymbalta, anti-depression drug. Among others, Cipla surged 2.6 percent.
India's largest software services exporter TCS rallied nearly 4 percent followed by Infosys, Wipro and HCL Technologies with 1-3 percent after US-based Accenture's third quarter revenues beat street estimates with strong traction in Europe and financial services.
Cigarette major ITC gained more than a percent. Private sector lender HDFC Bank was up 0.3 percent after its shareholders approved raising FII investment limit in bank to up to 74 percent.
However, shares of ICICI Bank, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, Sesa Sterlite, Hindalco, BHEL, Coal India, Tata Steel and Maruti Suzuki were down 1-2.6 percent.
Advancing shares outnumbered declining ones by a ratio of 1720 to 1287 on the BSE.
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