Market may remain range bound

The market ended higher for second consecutive session in a highly volatile trading as investors build positions ahead of Budget 2019 scheduled to be presented later this week.

The Sensex gained 129.98 points to close at 39,816 and the Nifty rose 44.70 points to 11,910.30.

The  market breadth was balanced with 1,135 shares advanced against 1,327 declining shares on the BSE.

Among Sensex stocks, ONGC, HDFC, Bharti Airtel, Coal India and Infosys gained 1-3 percent while Yes Bank plunged 8.2 percent. Sun Pharma, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto and IndusInd Bank were down 1-2.6 percent.

Adani Power, UPL, Tata Power, Torrent Power and Reliance Infrastructure were top gainers among midcaps while Bayer Crop Science, Oberoi Realty, MphasiS, Vakrangee and Kansai Nerolac were top losers.

Sectorally, the top gainers were the BSE Realty, Consumer Durables, Metal and Power indices. The top losers were the BSE Healthcare, Auto and Telecom indices.

Stocks globally eked out meagre gains on Tuesday amid worries the global economy was faltering after data showed manufacturing activity slowed last month, weakening appetite for risk. Investors were sceptical of further gains for equities after discouraging manufacturing surveys in the past 24 hours and a U.S. threat of additional tariffs on European goods.

Technical View

“Nifty showed minor upmove amidst a choppy trend and closed the day on a minor positive note. A small body positive candle was formed today with long lower shadow. Technically, this pattern indicates continuation of sideways range movement in the market. A sustainable move above 11920 levels could have further positive impact on the market,” Nagaraj Shetti – Senior Technical & Derivative Analyst, HDFC securities.

The short term trend of Nifty remains positive, the Nifty could reach upside levels of 12000 in the next few sessions

"After a weak start market regained in expectation of improvement in government’s spending to support economic growth with minimum dilution of fiscal target in the short-term. IT index out-performed due to fall in rupee while momentum was seen in bond as premium valuation on equity influenced risk averse to stay on bonds. Trade war concern of US-China subsided but a fresh trigger emerged due to additional tariffs on European Union, impacting global market,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Market View

The Nifty index slipped in red in the early hour of trade and traded with negative bias in the first half. However, it managed to pull back smartly from the lows post noon and ended the session 0.4% higher at 11,908 levels, said Jayant Manglik, President - Retail Distribution, Religare Broking Ltd.

“The near term, volatility is likely to remain high and hence we maintain our cautious stance on the markets at higher levels. The upcoming Union Budget is likely to provide further direction to the markets,” he said