Indian equity benchmark -- Nifty -- ended Wednesday’s trading session in a negative terrain ahead of weekly F&O expiry. After making a slightly positive start, soon index slipped into red terrain, as cautiousness came in after the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said a slight delay is expected in the onset of the southwest monsoon over Kerala and it is likely to arrive by June 4. Traders paid no heed towards UN report stating that India’s economy is expected to grow by 6.7 per cent in the calendar year 2024, supported by resilient domestic demand. It also said inflation in India is expected to decelerate to 5.5 per cent in 2023 as global commodity prices moderate and slower currency depreciation reduces imported inflation. In afternoon session, index extended its losses and traded near day’s low point, as some concerns came with a private report stating that a cash crunch is persisting in India, pushing short-term borrowing costs above a key policy interest rate and posing risks to an economy that needs cheaper funding to sustain its recovery. However, in last leg of trade, index trimmed some of its losses but ended 104.75 points lower.
Most of the sectorial indices ended in red except Auto and FMCG. The top gainers from the F&O segment were Exide Industries, Jubilant FoodWorks and Ramco Cements. On the other hand, the top losers were LIC Housing Finance, Oberoi Realty and Jindal Steel And Power. In the index option segment, maximum OI continues to be seen in the 18400 -18600 calls and 17900 -18100 puts indicating this is the trading range expectation.
