The index opened with a sharp gap-down of 176 points and staged a brief recovery of over 100 points in the first hour. However, it lost momentum after 10:15 am and remained under sustained selling pressure for the rest of the session.
Among constituents, Dr. Reddy’s, Cipla and Jio Financial Services were the top gainers, while Trent, Shriram Finance and Tech Mahindra led the declines.
Sectoral trends remained mixed. Nifty Pharma, Healthcare and Media indices ended in the green, while Auto, PSU Banks, Consumer Durables and Realty emerged as key laggards.
Broader markets also witnessed profit-booking, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Smallcap 100 indices declining 0.41% and 0.67%, respectively.
Looking ahead to Friday, focus will shift to earnings from Infosys, which has guided for FY27 revenue growth of 1.5% to 3.5% in constant currency terms, broadly in line with analyst expectations.
According to Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities, the short-term trend of the Nifty remains weak, although the broader near-term structure continues to be positive.
He expects the current weakness to find support in the 24,000-23,900 zone, with immediate resistance at 24,400.
LKP Securities’ Rupak De said that the index faced resistance near the 100 EMA, triggering a decline, while support was seen around the 10 EMA. He added that a decisive move below 24,150 could drag the index towards 23,900, whereas a move above 24,200 may open upside towards 24,500-24,600.
Nandish Shah of HDFC Securities said that the Nifty has entered the gap zone between 24,145 and 23,907, formed on April 15, which could act as a near-term support band.
On the upside, Shah sees resistance at 24,310 and 24,600.
Rajesh Bhosale of Angel One expects consolidation to persist amid ongoing uncertainty around US-Iran geopolitical developments.
He sees the 24,500-24,600 zone as a strong resistance band, with range-bound movement likely unless this level is decisively breached.
On the downside, the 24,000-23,900 zone, which coincides with the 20 DEMA and a bullish gap, is expected to act as immediate support.
As the index approaches monthly expiry, the 24,000-24,600 range is likely to remain a key trading band.
