Stock market today: Sensex crosses 80k, IT takes early lead

Both market indices (Nifty and Sensex) opened flat, albeit in green. As of 10:00 am, Sensex had breached the 80,000 mark and up by 0.46% while Nifty inched up by 0.44% to trade at 24,392.25 points.

Tata Motors, ICICI Bank, Infosys, Hindalco, and HCL Tech took the lead in the early morning trade, while HDFC Bank, Cipla, Dr. Reddy, Adani Entertainment, and Eicher Motors were among the laggards. As for broad market indices, all of them except India VIX, which was down by 1.51%, opened in green. Amidst sectoral indices, media (down by 0.17%) and healthcare (down by 0.09%) opened in red, while IT took a significant lead of over 1% in early morning trade. Banknifty inched up marginally by 0.14% during the early trade.

As per Mr. Aditya Gaggar, Director of Progressive Shares, "banking counters-led rally propelled the index to end the session at a fresh high of 24,287. An early indication from the GIFT Nifty suggests a strong start for Indian equities. Among the sectors, the PSU segment regained momentum (BHEL, IREDA, GPPL, and HUDCO).

"From the FMCG segment, Tata Consumer looks strong. In the oil and gas space, Castrol Ltd has given a major breakout, but considering a strong upmove, buying on dips will be an ideal strategy. Some metal counters are on the verge of a strong breakout, while selective buying is likely to persist in the pharma space. Once again, agro/specialty counters have shown strong momentum, and we believe it will continue further," he elaborated.

Sameet Chavan, Head Research, Technical, and Derivatives, Angel One, notes that the market is clearly in a bullish phase, even with extended parameters. The thematic movers are certainly adding appeal to the market. From a technical standpoint, it is very challenging to determine resilience, especially when the undertone is highly robust. Still, with the prevailing overbought parameters, it is advisable to maintain proper risk management and keep booking profits at regular intervals. On the lower end, 24,100–24,000 withholds an intermediate cushion, and a decisive breach below the same could only trigger some further cool-off in the benchmark.

"Looking ahead, we maintain a positive outlook on the market's undertone. However, we advise caution and not to be swayed by daily developments. The potential for thematic moves is clear, and it's these opportunities that can lead to significant outperformance for traders," he cautions.

Even Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research, Kotak Securities, believes that the uptrend is likely to continue. " Above 24.200/79,600, the market may rise to 24.400–24,500/80,200–80,500. However, below 24,200/79,600, its structure may change and fall to the next support zone, 24,000/79,000 levels", he notes.

As for gold, its prices surged over 1% to a near two-week high on Wednesday, spurred by growing expectations of a September interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve. This sentiment was largely fueled by recent U.S. data indicating a softening labor market, with a rise in first-time unemployment applications and jobless rolls reaching a 2-1/2 year high. The yellow metal is expected to remain buoyant in near future.