Top Stock Market action to look out for today

The Nifty may stabilise at current levels on Friday as traders assess if this week's 2.4 percent cut on the Index is overdone. Investors will also seek cues from July's wholesale inflation number to decide their strategy for local markets.

Meanwhile, the SGX Nifty signals a 17-point uptick at opening for Nifty futures today. The Parliament adjourned sine die without conducting a shred of legislative business. The GST remained embroiled in political mudslinging. Inflation is seen falling for the 5th straight month.

Overseas cues are positive. China's Yuan rose for the first time in four days after its 2 percent devaluation and subsequent weakness, giving heart to traders preferring long positions. Major US indices were either flat or fell between 0.1-0.3% on Thursday. European indices presented a mixed trend, but posted gains of between 0.8-1.2 percent.

The commodity space struck a bullish note for Indian equities. Crude oil futures remain at 6-year low with Brent Futures slipping below the crucial $50/bbl. Gold and Silver futures weaken further while Copper futures inch up. Markets in Japan, Hong Kong and China posted modest gains.

Meanwhile, the Nifty Index closed at 8,355 points, up 6 on Thursday as investors bought into beaten down blue chips and traders latched on stocks that showed a mild uptrend. The Nifty's support levels are seen at 8,289 points and the resistance is visible at 8,433-8,530.
The sentiment remains bearish in the cash market. Foreign Institutional Investors remained net sellers to the tune of `626 crore rupees on Wednesday, their 5th day of sales. Domestic institutions provided the much needed support with net purchases worth 546 crore rupees.

The derivatives space saw muted action. Traders made net sales of 236 crore rupees for Index Futures; Net purchases of 193 crore rupees for Stock Futures; Purchases of `943 crore rupees for Index options and net buys of 19 crore rupees for Stock Options.

Major earnings today are from Cipla, Hindalco and Jet Airways.

Strong delivery based buying was seen in Infosys and Asian Paints.

STOCKS TO WATCH:

EARNINGS RELATED: ICRA, DLF, Unitech, Balaji Telefilms, Claris Life and Orchid Chemicals.

Image credit: Indiatimes