Business Standard

Circumspection is the buzzword

Technicals

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Vijay Bhambwani Mumbai
 Traded volumes were a tad lower than the 10-day average as a larger section of the retail participants abstained from large-scale commitments.

 The breadth widely negative as losers outnumbered gainers by at least 45 per cent.

 The indices have topped out on an intra-day basis at nearly the April 2001 highs, which was a significant high of the bear run.

 That makes these levels crucial for the short-term outlook.

 The Nifty will continue to encounter resistance in the 1390-1405 band, which will see unloading of bull positions. Profit taking is likely to accelerate at these levels. The commensurate level on the Sensex is 4355-4375. On the downside, the correction is likely to be arrested at 1324 on the Nifty and at 4235 on the Sensex.

 Sector-specific activity will see outflows from the automobile (four-wheelers ), steel, telecom and some pharmaceutical stocks as the money flow index for these sectors is showing selling pressure from smart money. Inflows may continue in the oil & gas sector, cement, technology and to a degree in the software segment.

 However, the upsides being capped to 1400 levels on the Nifty in the short term, and the risk-reward ratio is not very favourable for a fresh entry at current prices.

 Trailing stop-losses need to be maintained at 2 per cent from the recent highs and partial profits need to be booked wherever available. The outlook for Wednesday is of caution as the corrective selling may just gain momentum.

 Though the downward correction has been widely anticipated, the actual onset of the same may see a build up on the downside as the outstanding positions in the F&O are fairly stretched in favour of the bulls.

 With high margin payouts, it is getting increasingly difficult for bulls to execute fresh long commitments.

 Among stocks, ACC has been building upward momentum and is likely to remain bullish as long as it remains above Rs 222 levels.

 Expect the immediate minor hurdle to be at Rs 226 levels, above which, the stock goes into a low resistance zone. The stock being a market out-performer in the short term, I advocate a buy in the cash and derivative segments in small lots.

 And as long as Bharat Heavy Electricals manages to stay above Rs 348 levels, expect the uptrend to continue.

 The scrip is exhibiting extremely high relative strength and should see a minor correction if the markets fall. Buying is recommended for delivery investors and options players who can buy out of money near month calls.

 Traded volumes should be curtailed in view of high volatility in the markets.

 Vijay Bhambwani

 CEO, BSPLindia.com

 The author is a Mumbai-based investment consultant and invites feedback at vijay@BSPLindia.com.

 Sebi disclosure: The analyst has no exposure to the scrips mentioned above.

 

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First Published: Sep 03 2003 | 12:00 AM IST

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