During the week, Nifty fell 0.83 percent to close at 24,366 points. At the same time, on the last trading day of the week, Nifty recorded a decline of 0.12 percent. On the other hand, Sensex slipped 70 points or 0.09 percent and closed at 78,009. The Sensex declined by 0.62 percent during the entire week.
According to market experts, weaker than expected data related to the US labor market had initially raised hopes that the US central bank Federal Reserve may adopt a soft stance on interest rates. However, a fresh rise in crude oil prices again raised inflation concerns and investors' attention turned to geopolitical developments.
Despite these challenges, the Indian market was supported by some positive factors domestically. Better-than-expected corporate results, stable rupee, softening 10-year government bond yield and gradual improvement in foreign institutional investors (FII) participation kept the market from suffering major losses.
The quarterly results of the companies were also quite strong. 33 companies of Nifty-50 performed better than market expectations. This indicated that despite global challenges, earnings of the Indian corporate sector remain strong and there are opportunities for investors in select stocks.
During the week, the impact of tensions in West Asia was seen on large-cap stocks. However, midcap stocks outperformed and led the major indices. Investors remained interested in midcap companies due to better earnings prospects.
Talking about sector-wise performance, good buying was seen in shares of consumer durables and realty sectors. Improvement in domestic demand and positive expectations regarding economic growth supported these sectors. At the same time, public sector banks (PSU banks) remained relatively strong due to strong asset quality, attractive valuations and better credit growth outlook.
On the other hand, profit booking was seen in shares of metal, automobile and FMCG sectors. Investors remained concerned about rising input costs and raw material prices in these sectors.
The broader market fared differently from the major indices. The Nifty Midcap-100 and Nifty Smallcap-100 indices gained 0.50 per cent each during the week, reflecting investors' continued interest in mid and smallcap stocks.
For further direction, investors will now keep an eye on crude oil prices, developments in West Asia, US retail sales data, Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes and China's economic data. These factors can give indications about the direction of global economic growth and US interest rates, the impact of which will be visible on the Indian market as well.