Indian markets recover to record highs after 3 days of losses

The domestic share market indices, Sensex and Nifty 50,surged to new all-time highs on Monday with Nifty around 25,400, buoyed by strong buying in sectors like banking, construction, power, and metals.At close, the Sensex was up 97.84 points or 0.12 percent at 82,988.78 and the Nifty was up 27.25 points or 0.11 percent at 25,383.75. About 2,080 shares advanced, 1,862 shares declined, and 85 shares remained unchanged. Sensex closed at fresh record highs while Nifty 50 was 5 points away from its record closing high.
Meanwhile,investor optimism surrounding the potential for a rate cut cycle following the U.S. Federal Reserve's FOMC meeting on September 17-18 further fueled the uptrend, adding momentum to the markets,noted analysts.
NTPC, JSW Steel, Hindalco Industries, Shriram Finance and L&T were the top gainers on the Nifty, while losers included Bajaj Finance, HUL, Bajaj Finserv, SBI Life Insurance and Britannia Industries.
On the sectoral front, except FMCG and Telecom, all other sectoral indices ended in the green with bank, capital goods, power, realty, media, metal up 0.4-1 percent.Broader indices also rallied to record high with the BSE midcap index ending on flat note, while smallcap index was up 0.3 percent.
Rupee Close:
On 16 Sep'24,the Indian  rupee witnessed range-bound trade and settled for the day higher by 4 paise at 83.88  against the US dollar on Monday supported by weak American currency and significant foreign fund inflows, while firm crude oil prices capped sharp gains.Forex traders reportedly stated market participants are eagerly awaiting cues from the US Fed policy on Wednesday, with a rate cut all but certain. However, the magnitude of the cut remains uncertain.
Trading Guide:
Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services reportedly stated,the domestic market traded in a narrow range with a positive bias as the participants are keenly awaiting the FEDs decision this week. The weakness in the US job market and benign inflation are pointing at a slew of rate cuts on the table. The inflow of foreign money and an expectation of stability in domestic growth may keep sentiment optimistic.
Market experts have recommended three stocks to buy— IndusInd Bank, Grasim Industries, and Tata Steel.

(Writer is a Finance Research Analyst, based in Gandhinagar, Gujarat)