Sensex edges up ahead of Budget, Fed meet; Nifty ends at 17,662

Ahead of the Union Budget and the Fed decision on interest rates on Wednesday, Indian equity indices closed marginally higher after a volatile session. Gains were seen in banking, financial, auto and FMCG stocks.

The BSE Sensex index ended 49 points or 0.08% higher at 59,549, while Nifty50 rose 13 points or 0.07% to settle at 17,662.

The market capitalisation of all listed companies on the BSE declined by Rs 12.05 lakh crore to Rs 277.33 lakh crore in January. The BSE Sensex index fell 1,291 points or 2.12% to 59,550 in the month.

From the Sensex pack, SBI, M&M, UltraTech Cement and Power Grid Corp were the top gainers, rising over 3%. ITC, Titan, Tata Motors, ICICI Bank, NTPC and Maruti also closed with gains.

On the other hand, Bajaj Finance, TCS, Tech Mahindra, Sun Pharma and Asian Paints closed with cuts.

Sector-wise, the Nifty PSU Bank rose 4.28% and Nifty Auto surged 1.89%. Financial, media, metal, consumer durables, realty and FMCG stocks also closed higher. Whereas, in the broader market, Nifty Midcap50 increased 1.90% and Smallcap50 advanced 2.78%.

Experts View
“The Indian market has been underperforming compared to the rest of the world because it has been trading at premium valuations, which are in contrast to the moderation forecasted in the domestic economy for FY24. The Adani saga has prolonged the correction as FII selling has increased. Now the focus is on the outcome of Budget and Fed policy, on which the market has a mixed view,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

In the case of Nifty, a gap up opening on January 31 was followed by a steep selling pressure in the beginning of the session. "The index is heading towards the level of 17,800, which holds the key for further course of action from a short-term perspective. If the index manages to surpass 17,800 then it will be poised for a larger up move. Till then a consolidation in the range of 17,400-17,800 is possible," Gaurav Ratnaparkhi, Head of Technical Research, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas said.

Global Markets
Asian shares mostly fell in muted trading on Tuesday as investors awaited decisions on interest rates and earnings reports from around the world.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 0.4% to finish at 27,327. South Korea's Kospi declined nearly 1% to 2,426. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 1.6% to 21,718, while the Shanghai Composite shed 0.4% to 3,257.15.

Meanwhile, the pan-European STOXX 600 index lost 0.17% and MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe shed 0.99%.

Currency Watch
The rupee weakened 0.51% versus the US dollar, and quoted at 81.92 per dollar as traders cited custodial outflows amid volatility in equities ahead of the Union Budget and the US Federal Reserve meeting outcome.

Crude Impact
Oil prices fell on Tuesday as the prospect of further interest rate increases and ample Russian crude flows outweighed demand recovery expectations from China.

March Brent crude futures fell by $1.01, or 1.19%, to $83.89 per barrel. Likewise, US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures dropped 92 cents, or 1.18%, to $76.98 a barrel.

(With inputs from agencies)