Equity markets are in for a turbulent ride this week with future triggers dependant on issues like global liquidity concerns , residual effect of yen-carry trade and domestic inflation.
Investors are jittery after intermittent contradictory rallies last week; any adverse news or events, especially in the wake of the US economy note and Japanese economy note to be released this week, will further destabilise the market, say market participants.
Market opened marginally high today despite expectations of peek global markets.
Barring Singapore’s Straits Times, Kospi and Hang Seng, most overseas markets ended with losses last week. The US and Japanese markets also put up a no-show. The Nikkei market was down 0.31% for the week ended March 9. The benchmark index, BSE Sensex , ended the week with a marginal loss of 1.13 points at 12884.99. The broad-based NSE Nifty shed 8.75 points over the previous week’s close to settle at 3,718.
According to Amitabh Chakraborty, president - equities, Religare Securities, “The market is likely to remain volatile. As such investors should only go for companies that have sound fundamentals.”
“The market may have ended lower on Friday; but it appears to be on a rebound path. We are seeing some buying in Nifty, which can be considered a positive sign,’’ he added. While most analysts are maintaining a cautious outlook, there appears to be a glimmer of hope on assumptions of good advance tax collection figures (to come out on March 15) and bountiful quarter four earnings. However, an element of caution does remain .
“The market should be volatile in the coming week. We are bound to see some heavy upswings and down covering in the days to come. Indian markets will move on taking cues from the global bourses. The fact of the matter is that international markets will only stabilise when there is clarity on issues like yen-carry trade, global liquidity and US slowdown,’’ said Sai Tampi, head - PMS, HSBC Asset Management.
On the domestic front, inflation and rising interest rates would continue to be a cause for concern. Counting out all these negative factors, the India growth story is still intact. This will help the markets to do well once cloud of uncertainty moves away, Mr Tampi added.
“The volatility factor should be there till the next quarter. As far as foreign inflows are concerned, FIIs are likely to remain in cash for some more time. They would only be interested in investing in a market that has adjusted volatility,” said Amrish Baliga, vice-president , ICICI Securities . According to analysts, sectors like hotels, hospitality, power and tourism look good in current market conditions. Reliance Industries, Bharti, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, IDFC and M&M are said to be good buys at lower levels.
However, the fact remains that the market is still heavily loaded with outstanding positions, which is a cause of concern. Summing it up aptly, an Edelweiss Capital report says, “With such a sharp correction, there will be substantial positions already making huge losses. On the other hand, any further fall could force these weak positions to exit, thereby starting the process of unwinding. In any case, we may see more correction in the market till a point where all the weak hands are out of the market.”
Note:
DRIVERS OF THE WEEK
Experts feel the market appears to be on a rebound path
Analysts expect the market to be volatile in the coming week
They feel global markets will stabilise if there’s clarity on issues like yen-carry trade