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Daily market commentary 08 March 2023 by Mr. Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd

Domestic equities opened gap down in line with global markets post the hawkish commentary from US Fed Chair Jerome Powell. But value buying at lower levels led the markets reverse its losses and close in green. Nifty which made a negative start and fell by more than 100 points during the day, recovered in the last one hour and ended the session with gains of 43 points (+0.2%) at 17754 levels. This marked as the third consecutive positive close for Indian markets. Broader market too ended in green with Nifty midcap100/ Nifty smallcap100 up 0.5%/0.2%. Sectorally it was a mixed bag with IT, Pharma, Realty and consumer durables down ~0.5% each while, Auto and Oil & gas largely pulled the market in green, supported by Banks, FMCG and infra – all of which gained 0.5-1%. Some of the niche sectors like defence, sugar and rice too were in action following positive news flows. Going ahead, market is likely to continue with its volatility till the next US Fed interest rate decision outcome (due later this month), where investors are now building in expectation of 50bps rate hike. As per the Fed Chair, the ultimate rate hike is likely to higher than previously anticipated given the stubborn inflation. Till there is clarity on the interest rate front, market is likely to be volatile in a broader range.

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