What is your view on Nifty and Sensex for trading on 22 October? How have results been till now?

Trading on Wednesday ended with gains for the Nifty and the Sensex. The Nifty in face scaled the 11,900 levels to close at 11,937. While the 12,000 levels is just a shy away, we have seen in the past that this level happens to be very sticky for Nifty.

In terms of the results that you were asking about, Bajaj Finance profits fell on higher provisions but Ultratech reported doubling of profits on better efficiencies across its pan-India plants. The early indications are that the cement, steel and infrastructure companies could see a sharp recovery pre-COVID levels. Bank results could hold the key.

The good news is that there is a surge in foreign investor buying in Indian equities. For example, FPIs were net buyers to the tune of Rs.2108 crore while DFIs sold Rs.1634 crore on Wednesday. The FPIs have infused close to Rs.5400 crore just in the first 3 days of the current week and could close October with handsome inflows.

Global cues on Wednesday were not too encouraging. Europe saw deep cuts of over 1% while Dow and NASDAQ saw minor losses. However, the SGX Nifty is trading with about 30 bps gains in early trades and that is a positive signal. The key driver from here would be the results and any stimulus the government plans, however small.