Near term market trend to be decided by Q1 results, Fed policy decision

New Delhi, July 24

The near-term market trend will be influenced by a host of factors like the recent Q1 results, some major results expected this week and policy decisions like the US Federal Reserve meeting outcome on Wednesday, says V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

Q1 results of RIL, though a tad disappointing on top and bottom line, are good when viewed from the perspective of the growth engines of the company -- Jio Infocom and Reliance Retail -- which are doing well and shows promise of improving, going forward, he said.

ICICI Bank has delivered the best results in the banking universe with 40 per cent growth in net profit and impressive loan growth. Kotak Bank, too, has done well.

But since the NIMs are likely to remain under pressure, no big spurt in earnings growth can be expected, in the coming quarters. So, while these stocks will remain strong and resilient, a sustained rally appears difficult, he added.

The Fed is likely to raise rate by 25 bp on Wednesday, but the market movement will be decided by the commentary of the Fed chief regarding future inflation and rate trends. Investors may wait and watch these events unfold.

BSE Sensex is trading up by 46 points at 66,471 points on Monday morning. Kotak Mahindra Bank is down by 3.5 per cent.