Market expert Raghvendra Singh on Monday said 23,660-23,500 levels would act as a strong base for benchmark Nifty50. "There is a small gap around Rs 24,000-24,200 and once the index closes above the said levels, we can see a sharp rally up to 24,800-24,900 levels," he told Business Today.
In response to a query on the automobile counters, Singh said, "Most of these stocks can see a decent upside from hereon as we have seen a strong rollover in the entire segment. We are expecting a strong upside rally in January 2025. The worst is over now and we can see a good upside from here. So, all auto stocks are looking good except Tata Motors Ltd. The structure on Tata Motors' scrip is not good as it has fallen around 30-40 per cent. The best stocks in the auto sector are Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) Ltd and Eicher Motors Ltd. Both stocks are looking good on charts and M&M has the potential to see Rs 3,130-3,170 levels. Eicher Motors can hit an upside target of Rs 5,000."
From the pharma pack, the market specialist liked shares of Dr Reddy's Laboratories and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd at current levels.
Sharing his views on the IT stocks, Singh said, "IT companies can deliver good results in this quarter or the next. There is a possibility of profit booking as we have seen a robust rally in the last 2-3 months. The overall trend now appears to be weak from hereon."
On the stock-specific front, Tata Motors was down 0.91 per cent at Rs 743.70. M&M slipped 0.42 per cent to trade at Rs 3,037.15 while Eicher Motors edged up 0.18 per cent at Rs 4,884.75. Dr Reddy's shares were down 0.17 per cent at Rs 1,386.95. Sun Pharma was up 0.93 per cent at Rs 1,879.
Meanwhile, Indian equity benchmarks were trading almost flat today as gains in pharma and banks countered losses in auto and IT stocks. Broader markets (mid- and small-cap shares) were mixed.
13 out of the 19 sector gauges -- compiled by the NSE -- were trading in the green. Sub-indexes Nifty Pharma and Nifty Bank were outperforming the NSE platform by rising as much as 0.62 per cent and 0.28 per cent. In contrast, Nifty Auto and Nifty IT fell 0.74 per cent and 0.37 per cent, respectively.
The overall market breadth was weak as 2,407 shares were declining while 1,581 were advancing on BSE.