The Hindu Business Line : Bulls prevail

The sentiment reading of the tradable counters stands neutral. Bull pressure on Friday is likely to change the sentiment reading in their favour. On the contrary, it is likely to turn bearish.

Nifty futures recommendation: The September contract opened three points above its previous close and further gained 14 points. Bears were unable to make any impact during the day's trading. The September contract closed with a gain of 13 points with respect to Wednesday's close.

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Thursday's move had no impact on the recommended levels. The long position in the expired contract will be closed out at 1610.75. This leaves the trade with a nominal profit of seven points. Bullish trigger level for the September contract is placed closer to its closing value. Bull move on Friday is likely to initiate the uptrend in the September contract.

Stock futures recommendation: The most active counters list underwent a change. M&M gained entry with the exit of Infosys. Maruti moved to the fifth position followed by Satyam and ACC.

None of the counters in the list are in the downtrend. Bear domination on Friday could be a threat to the uptrend counters in the list. Bulls are likely to have opportunity in five counters. Selling opportunities are likely to exist in almost all the counters. Buying in ONGC is likely to be the best for Friday's trading. Buy level for this counter is placed within a rupee from its current level. Bull pressure on Friday is likely to trigger the uptrend in ONGC.

Cash segment: The composition of the top-10 tradable list remains unchanged. The ranking of the list too remains the same with no major changes. Bulls were successful in initiating the uptrend in the recommended counter — Reliance.

Except for the downtrend in Maruti, all the other counters in the list are likely to be under threat. Buying opportunities are likely to exist in five counters. Selling opportunities are likely to exist in four counters. Buying in ONGC is likely to be the best bet for Friday's trading. Bullish trigger level for this counter is placed closer to its last traded price. Bull move on Friday 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 technical analyst and fund management consultant.