Week Ahead

For the past week, the BSE Sensex fell by 351 points to close at 80,982, while the Nifty 50 dropped 117 points to 24,718. On a brighter note, the Nifty Midcap 100 index rose by 0.3 percent, though the Smallcap 100 index saw a decline of 0.3 percent.

The market reached a significant milestone with the Nifty 50 breaching the 25,000 mark, but failed to maintain this level due to selling pressure on August 2. The index ended the week with a slight loss of half a percent.

Rising recession fears in the U.S., highlighted by a Manufacturing PMI drop to 49.6 in July and weaker-than-expected job data, dampened global market sentiment.

Globally, economic growth is showing signs of weakness, compounded by escalating trade tensions, conflicts in the Middle East, and persistently high inflation.

Looking ahead, the market is anticipated to consolidate with a negative bias. Key factors to watch include the Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy, corporate earnings, and oil prices.

All eyes will be on the Monetary Policy Committee's three-day meeting, concluding on August 8.

Further more than 900 companies will release their quarterly earnings in the coming week including Nifty 50 names like Bharti Airtel, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, Eicher Motors, and Grasim Industries.

Further, the bank loan and deposit growth for the fortnight ended July 26, as well as the foreign exchange reserves for the week ended August 2 will be released on August 9.

Technically, Nifty 50 may see more weakness along with consolidation in the coming week given the sharp selling pressure after hitting a new high of 25,078 and the formation of a bearish candlestick pattern on the weekly timeframe with higher volumes. The index may take support at around 24,600-24,400 zone before showing any rebound. The immediate resistance can be 24,900, but if it closes below 24,400, the next support lies around 24,200 zone.

According to weekly options data, 24,100-24,000 seems to be the key support zone for the Nifty, while the 24,800 is the immediate hurdle on the higher side, followed by the 25,000 mark.