The Hindu Business Line : Bear run arrested

THE sentiment reading of the tradable counters remains bearish with no uptrend counters. Bull domination on Thursday is likely to change the sentiment reading in their favour. On the contrary, the prevailing sentiment is likely to be further strengthened.

Nifty futures recommendation: The May month contract opened around its previous close and thereafter moved steadily upward during the day's trading. It registered an intra-day high of 1701.65 after making a low of 1661.25. May contract closed with a gain of 28 points.

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The short position in the May contract remains intact. However, this is likely to be under threat for Thursday. Bullish trigger level for the May contract has also been moved closer. Bull domination on Thursday has the potential to reverse the prevailing trend in the May contract.

Stock futures recommendation: The composition as well as the ranking of the top-10 tradeable list remains unchanged. Trading activity in IOC was quite hectic on Wednesday with more than 2600 trades. The exit level for the short position in GAIL is placed at 205.70.

For Thursday, the downtrend in Infosys and Tata Motors is likely to be under threat. Bulls are likely to have opportunity in six counters. Selling opportunities are likely to exist in CNX IT and ONGC. Buying in State Bank is likely to be the best for Thursday's trading. This counter is in the sideways mode. Buy level for State Bank is placed just above its closing value. Bull pressure on Thursday is likely to initiate the uptrend in State Bank.

Cash segment: The top-10 tradeable list underwent a change. Power Trading Corp gained entry with the exit of Canara Bank. The ranking of the list remains the same with no major changes. The downtrend in Canara Bank is likely to be terminated at 170.30.

Except for Power Trade Corp., all the other counters in the list are likely to be safe. Buying opportunities are likely to exist in Infosys, ONGC, Satyam and State Bank. Selling opportunities are likely to exist in Infosys and ONGC. The best among the above is likely to be the buying in ONGC. Bullish trigger level for this counter is placed closer to its last traded price. Bull move on Thursday is likely to initiate a fresh uptrend in ONGC.

(Note: All price levels refer to the absolute value of the shares traded on the NSE. There is risk of loss in trading.)

The author is a Chennai-based technical analyst and fund management consultant.