Nifty 50, Sensex Outlook: Market Forecast for 21 May

Indian Stock Market Benchmark Indices Set to Open Higher on Thursday

The Indian stock market benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty 50, are expected to open higher on Thursday, driven by upbeat cues from global markets and hopes of a US-Iran ceasefire deal. The trends on Gift Nifty also indicate a strong start for the Indian benchmark index, with the Gift Nifty trading around 23,804 levels, a premium of nearly 136 points from the Nifty futures' previous close.

Market Performance on Wednesday

On Wednesday, the Indian stock market ended marginally higher, with the benchmark Nifty 50 holding above 23,600 level. The Sensex gained 117.54 points, or 0.16%, to close at 75,318.39, while the Nifty 50 settled 41.00 points, or 0.17%, higher at 23,659.00.

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Sensex Prediction

Sensex continues to trade within a broader sideways range for the sixth consecutive trading session, reflecting cautious market sentiment and lack of strong directional momentum. According to Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research at Kotak Securities, the short-term market texture is non-directional, and this non-directional activity is likely to continue in the near future. For day traders, 75,000 and 74,500 would act as immediate support zones, while 75,800 - 76,000 could be the key resistance areas for the bulls.

Nifty 50 Prediction

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Nifty 50 formed a bullish candlestick pattern on the daily chart after recovering sharply from lower levels and filling the opening gap-down. The formation indicates buying strength emerging at lower levels and improving short-term sentiment in the market. According to Nagaraj Shetti, Senior Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities, a long bull candle has formed at the lows on the daily chart, indicating emergence of buying from the lows.

Bank Nifty Prediction

Bank Nifty index rallied 153.05 points, or 0.29%, to end at 53,562.20 on Wednesday, forming a bullish candle with a lower high and a lower low, highlighting strong pullback after a gap down opening. According to Sudeep Shah, Head - Technical and Derivatives Research at SBI Securities, the immediate support for Bank Nifty is placed in the 53,100 - 53,000 zone, and any sustainable move below this zone could result in the index extending its weakness towards 52,700, followed by 52,400 in the short term.

Overall, the Indian stock market is expected to open higher on Thursday, driven by upbeat cues from global markets and hopes of a US-Iran ceasefire deal. However, the market is expected to remain range-bound, with the Nifty 50 trading within the 23,300 – 24,000 range, and the Bank Nifty index consolidating in the range of 52,700 - 54,700.