
Stock recommendations for 19 January from MarketSmith India
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. On Friday, Indian equity benchmarks snapped a two-session losing streak to end in the green, largely bolstered by a massive rally in the IT sector following Infosys's robust Q3 results. Nifty 50 gained 28.75 points (0.11%) to settle at 25,694.35, while Sensex climbed 187.64 points (0.23%) to close at 83,570.35.
Despite a strong start fueled by a 5.6% surge in Infosys and optimistic revenue guidance, mid-session profit booking in heavyweights like Cipla and Jio Financial trimmed the initial gains. Market breadth remained cautious as the advance-decline ratio favored bears, with 22 advances against 28 declines on the Nifty 50 index. On the sectoral front, Nifty IT was the standout performer, surging over 3.3%, while the Pharma and Consumer Durables indices faced selling pressure.
Macroeconomically, sentiment was supported by news of a potential India-US trade deal, though persistent FII outflows and elevated crude prices capped the upside. Indian equities ended Friday’s session on a cautious note, with Nifty 50 closing marginally higher at 25,694.35, up 0.11%, after a volatile intraday move. The index opened firm and scaled a fresh intraday high of 25,873, but profit booking at higher levels dragged it off the peak, reflecting hesitancy ahead of near-term global and domestic cues.
Sensex mirrored the trend, settling largely flat by the close. Market breadth remained weak despite the positive close, as the advance-decline ratio was skewed in favour of declines with 1,339 stocks advancing against 1,828 declines, indicating selective participation and underlying caution. On the sectoral front, IT stocks outperformed sharply, driven by renewed buying interest and a firm outlook, while PSU
. Read on livemint.com