Nifty Faces Intense Resistance at 23,800: Analyst Insights and Trading Recommendations

Indian Stock Market Sees Caution Amid Recent Rebound

The domestic benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty settled lower on Friday as investors turned cautious after the recent rebound. The Nifty continued to face strong resistance near the 23,800 level, according to analysts.

The Sensex declined 160.73 points or 0.21 percent to settle at 75,237.99 after fluctuating between gains and losses during the session. This represents a significant drop from the benchmark's early trade high of nearly 470 points.

The Nifty slipped 46.10 points or 0.19 percent to close at 23,643.50, snapping its two-session winning run. The index had briefly touched an intraday high of 23,839.30 before witnessing profit booking.

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The Nifty opened marginally higher amid mixed global cues but remained range-bound for most of the day as selling in select heavyweight stocks capped gains.

According to Virat Jagad, Senior Technical Research Analyst at Bonanza, the 23,800-23,950 zone remained a strong resistance area for the Nifty. This zone coincided with a previous breakdown region and several failed recovery attempts in recent weeks.

Jagad noted that the index was also trading around a cluster of short-term moving averages, which was restricting upward momentum. He said momentum indicators continued to remain range-bound, indicating lack of strong follow-through buying above resistance levels.

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Immediate support for the index was placed around 23,450-23,500, while a stronger demand zone was visible near 23,150-23,200. A sustained move above 23,950 could trigger fresh upside momentum towards the 24,200 mark, Jagad added.

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities, said the index slipped from the support-turned-resistance zone of 23,800 and continued to form lower tops on the daily chart, indicating a bearish setup.

De noted that the index was facing strong resistance at the 20 EMA on the daily timeframe and the 50 EMA on the weekly timeframe. According to De, the market may witness renewed selling pressure if the Nifty falls below 23,500.

"A breach below 23,500 could drag the index towards 23,150 and possibly lower levels. On the upside, 23,800 is expected to continue acting as a key short-term point of polarity," he added.

Sector-wise, IT, pharma, and FMCG stocks showed relative resilience, while realty and metal counters remained under pressure. Broader markets also ended weak amid choppy trade, with the midcap and smallcap indices falling nearly 0.5 percent each.