Upper West Parliamentary Caucus inspects progress of Wa West 24-hour market project at Ponyentanga

Indian equity indices closed the week with a lackluster performance as geopolitical tensions in West Asia and rising crude oil prices continued to influence market sentiment. The Nifty, led by NSE, increased by 20.15 points or 0.1% to finish at 24,252, while the BSE's Sensex remained unchanged at 77,540.83. Over the week, the indices experienced declines of 0.5% and 0.6%, respectively, following a marginal drop in the previous week.

US-Iran tensions persisted, causing markets to trade in a narrow range, according to Sunny Agrawal, head of research at SBI Securities.

Agrawal indicated that the U.S. Federal Reserve's intervention to reduce 30-year U.S. bond yields offered some short-term relief, coupled with better-than-expected earnings season results, with most companies reporting double-digit revenue and profit growth. However, the escalation in geopolitical disputes pushed Brent crude oil futures above $94 a barrel, maintaining prices above $90 throughout the week.

Analysts suggest that the Nifty may remain in a 24,000-24,500 range, with any positive geopolitical developments or a reduction in oil prices being closely watched over the weekend. Should these factors not materialize, the Nifty is expected to continue trading within a sideways pattern. Ruchit Jain, head of equity technical research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services, emphasized that crude oil prices remain the primary concern for the market.

A potential drop in oil prices could trigger a break above the Nifty's resistance level of 24,500-24,600.

The Nifty Volatility Index climbed 4.1% to 11.2 on Friday, suggesting some caution among investors. Nifty Midcap 150 rose by 0.1%, while Nifty Small-cap 250 increased by 0.4%. Among the 4,564 stocks traded on Friday, 2,177 advanced and 2,152 declined at the close. The midcap index remained flat for the week, while Smallcap 250 gained 0.7%.

Recent volatility has seen the Nifty correct from its recent highs, failing to surpass the previous day's highs for 12 straight sessions. However, a mid-week resurgence has seen the index respect its 24,000 support level. Historically, Nifty has formed higher bottoms in every correction since March, indicating a positive trend for the market.

Elsewhere, Asian markets saw a decline in Japan by 0.3%, a flat performance in China, and gains in Hong Kong (1.2%), South Korea (0.9%), and Taiwan (0.7%). The Stoxx 600 pan-European index increased by 0.2% at the time of publication. Foreign portfolio investors sold shares worth ₹543 crore, while domestic institutions bought shares worth ₹2,124 crore.