Indian Markets Close 2024 with Caution Amid Global Downtrends

Indian stock markets end 2024 without a rally, opening with selling pressure. Nifty dropped to 23,560.60, while Sensex declined to 77,982.57. Experts point to global uncertainties and upcoming Q3 results impacting investor sentiments. Divergent sectoral performances and market challenges shape cautious outlook for the New Year.

Indian stock markets opened the final trading session of 2024 on a subdued note, reflecting global market trends. On Friday, the Nifty began at 23,560.60 points, marking a decline of 84.30 points or 0.36 percent. Similarly, the Sensex descended to 77,982.57 points, losing 265.56 points or 0.34 percent.

Market analysts highlight a weak December for almost all emerging markets worldwide, with Indian indices in a three-month downtrend. Future market direction is contingent upon the upcoming quarter three results and U.S. president-elect Donald Trump's policies after his inauguration in January. According to V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, the S&P 500 dropped by 2.34 percent and Nifty by 2.6 percent, steering markets to cautiously step into the new year amidst high uncertainty and stretched valuations.

Sectoral indices exhibited mixed performances, with gains in Nifty Auto, Nifty Media, Nifty Metal, Nifty PSU Bank, and Oil and Gas. Conversely, Nifty Bank and Nifty IT faced downward pressure. In the Nifty 50, 20 stocks recorded gains, while 30 suffered declines. Notable gainers included ONGC, BEL, SBIN, and Coal India. Major losers were Tech Mahindra, Infosys, HCL Tech, and TCS. Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research at Axis Securities, noted the Nifty's technical movements, indicating the significance of breaking above 24,150 for a bullish trend, especially with the daily Ichimoku chart turning bearish. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 and South Korea's KOSPI closed lower, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng and Indonesia's Jakarta Composite went up marginally.

(With inputs from agencies.)