The four session winning streak came to an end as the Nifty faced resistance around the 23,500 mark and slipped 85 points during a range bound session. After opening higher, the index came under selling pressure, although a mid session recovery helped limit the losses. The Nifty eventually settled at 23,329, down 0.43%.
Among Nifty constituents, Coal India and Eternal were the top gainers, while Tata Consumer Products and Nestlé India were the biggest laggards. At the sectoral level, Nifty Media and Nifty Realty outperformed, while Nifty IT and Nifty Cement ended among the biggest losers.
The broader market also remained under pressure, with both the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 ending in negative territory.
Looking ahead, Indian equities are likely to remain sideways to marginally positive in the near term, although elevated global volatility could keep gains in check. Developments in West Asia, Brent crude prices, foreign fund flows and global market cues will remain key factors to watch.
Investors will also track the S&P Global Manufacturing and Services Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) data due on Wednesday for fresh cues on domestic economic activity.
Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities said the Nifty has turned lower after facing resistance near the crucial 23,600 level, which marks an important change in polarity.
According to Shetti, the index could see further weakness towards the 23,200 to 23,100 zone in the short term. Any recovery could face resistance around 23,500 to 23,600 levels, he said.Hitesh Rathi of Angel One said the Nifty is likely to face immediate resistance at 23,500, followed by a stronger hurdle at 23,600. On the downside, he sees the 23,100 to 23,000 zone as a key support area. A sustained break below this range could open the door for further weakness, he said.
Rupak De of LKP Securities said the near term sentiment remains weak, with immediate support at 23,300. A break below this level could drag the index towards 23,000, while a move above 23,400 could take the Nifty towards 23,600 and higher.
Meanwhile, the Bank Nifty has been consolidating within a narrow range of around 1,300 points over the past nine trading sessions.
Sudeep Shah of SBI Securities said the 56,700 to 56,800 zone, which coincides with the 200 day exponential moving average, is likely to remain a crucial resistance area. A decisive move above 56,800 could trigger another leg of the rally and take the index towards 57,400 in the short term.
On the downside, Shah sees 55,800 to 55,700 as an important support zone. A sustained break below 55,700 could extend the decline towards 55,200, he said.