D-Street week ahead: All eyes on Union Budget; auto sales, Q3 earnings, COVID to be in focus

As many as 38 Nifty50 stocks finished the week in the red.

All eyes will be on the government's Budget for FY23. Auto sales, readings of manufacturing as well as services PMI surveys, corporate earnings and COVID updates will also be on investors' radar.

"We expect the government to continue with the growth agenda but with a roadmap for fiscal prudence... We believe the Union Budget would set the tone for the domestic market amid the global sell-off. Volatility remains high during the Budget week so participants should continue with a cautious stance and prefer hedged positions," said Ajit Mishra, VP-Research at Religare Broking.

A slew of companies are slated to report their quarterly financial results during the week, including Tata Motors, Sun Pharma, Indian Oil, BPCL, HDFC, ITC, Titan and SBI.

The Nifty50 is trading around its 100-day exponential moving average on the daily chart, and appears to have found a cushion at the previously established demand zone of 16,850, according to Yesha Shah, Head of Equity Research, Samco Securities. "The Nifty Bank index is bouncing from the short-term average on the daily chart. These pieces of evidence are hinting at the continuation of a major uptrend," she said.

Shah suggests traders to maintain a bullish bias as long as the 50-scrip index holds 16,850, a break below which can trigger a fall up to 16,000. She sees immediate resistance for the index at 17,650.

She expects resistance for the index at 18,300, and advises traders to maintain a cautious to mildly bullish outlook.

Religare Broking's Mishra expects the Nifty to hover in a 16,600-17,600 range. "A decisive break on the either side will trigger the next directional move," he said.

Jan 31: Economic Survey for FY22, infrastructure output data

Feb 1: Union Budget, manufacturing PMI survey

Feb 2: Trade data

Feb 3: Services PMI survey

AGS Transact Technologies shares will be listed on stock exchanges BSE and NSE on January 31. Adani Wilmar's IPO will close for subscription on the same day.

Vedant Fashions' IPO to raise up to Rs 3,149 crore will hit the Street on February 4.

Foreign fund flows will remain in focus. Last week, foreign institutional investors net sold Indian equities worth Rs 19,451.6 crore ($2.6 billion), according to provisional exchange data.