Nifty may face hurdle around 5,240

The markets moved in a fairly narrow band in the week under review. The BSE benchmark index touched a high of 17,110 and a low of 16,636 on the first trading day of the week. The Sensex finally ended with a marginal gain of 23 points at 16,973.

The markets more or less remained muted to the positive outcome from the much-anticipated Greek election and similarly did not react much negatively to the status quo stance taken by the Reserve Bank of India in its policy review. Going ahead, the global market scenario and the derivatives expiry are likely to weigh on the market sentiment.

This week, among the Sensex 30 stocks, Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) surged over five per cent to Rs 279 and Hero MotoCorp rallied over four per cent to Rs 2,085. Tata Motors, Larsen and Toubro, Sun Pharma, Hindustan Unilever and Gail India were the other major gainers. On the other hand, Hindalco Industries slumped five per cent to Rs 117. Tata Consultancy Services and Reliance Industries were the other prominent losers.

As per the monthly Fibonacci charts, the Sensex may still target 17,225 on the upside. However, the index needs to sustain above 16,840 to maintain the positive bias.

Next week, the Sensex may face resistance around 17,150-17,265, while on the downside may seek support around 16,790-16,680. The NSE Nifty moved in a range of 149-odd points. The index touched a high of 5,190, and a low of 5,042. The index eventually ended with a loss of seven points at 5,146. The Nifty has made a ‘Hanging Man’ candlestick pattern on the daily charts, which is generally a bearish sign. However, the weekly Stochastic Slow remains in favour of the bulls. Hence, we could see both ways movement next week.

The daily charts indicate multiple support levels for the Nifty around 5,070-5,030-5,000. The short-term bias is likely to remain positive as long as the index maintains above the 5,000-mark. On the upside, the index can spurt to 5,225-5,280 odd levels.

The weekly charts indicate near support around 5,100, and further strength above 5,200. A weekly close below the 5,100-level can terminate the current positive bias. Next week, the Nifty is likely to seek support around 5,090-5,055, while facing resistance at around 5,200-5,240.