Stock market today: Nifty50 opens on a flat note; BSE Sensex near 82,600

Stock market today: Nifty50 and BSE Sensex, the Indian equity benchmark indices, started Thursday’s trading session on a flat note. While Nifty50 was near 25,200, BSE Sensex was around 82,600. At 9:21 AM, Nifty50 was trading at 25,205.55, down 7 points.

BSE Sensex was at 82,601.58, down 33 points.Market experts anticipate consolidation with an upward trend, backed by better rural and healthcare performance, alongside potential developments in India-US trade talks.VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited says, “There are no triggers for the market to break out of the consolidation range in which it has been stuck for two months now.

Even an India-US interim trade deal has been discounted by the market, leaving no scope for a sharp rally decisively breaking the range. One positive and surprise factor that can trigger a rally is a tariff rate much below 20%, say 15%, which the market has not discounted.

So, watch out for developments on the trade and tariff front. “Results of the IT sector continue to disappoint and, therefore, this can remain a drag on the overall market.

Leading private sector banks are in a defensive mode now. The market is discounting NIM compression in the Q1 results. But this will reverse from Q3 onwards making them good buys now. From the valuation perspective PSU banks are attractive."US indices finished slightly higher on Wednesday, with Nasdaq reaching a new peak, despite brief turbulence following reports suggesting US President Donald Trump might dismiss Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.Asian equities showed mixed performance at opening following volatile US trading amid uncertainty regarding Powell's position.Crude oil prices advanced during early trading hours on Thursday, recovering from previous day's decline, supported by robust economic indicators from major oil consuming nations and improving trade relations.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market and other asset classes given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)