Stock Market Weekly Wrap: Sensex, Nifty50 Remain Range-Bound; Fed Policy & FII Flows Key for Next Week

Investors advised to focus on quality stocks amid ongoing market consolidation; IT, auto sectors under pressure.

March 16, 2025: The Indian stock market remained range-bound over the past week, closing with modest losses as global trade tensions and significant foreign investor outflows weighed on sentiment. Despite some sectoral resilience in financials and pharma, the IT, auto, and realty sectors dragged down the broader indices.

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📉 On Thursday, the BSE Sensex fell 200.85 points (0.27%), closing at 73,828.91, marking its fifth consecutive session of losses.
📉 The NSE Nifty50 also declined by 73.30 points (0.33%) to settle at 22,397.20.

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Sectoral Performance & Market Trends

📉 Biggest Losing Sectors:

• IT, auto, and realty sectors saw the biggest losses.
• Midcap and small-cap indices dropped between 2.15% and 4%.

📈 Sectors That Held Ground:

• Financials and pharma showed relative resilience, preventing steeper market declines.

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Key Market Drivers for Next Week

🔎 U.S. Federal Reserve’s Monetary Policy (March 19):

• Global markets will closely watch the Fed’s stance on interest rates.
• While recent inflation data has been favorable, uncertainty around rate cuts persists due to ongoing trade tensions.

🔎 Foreign Institutional Investor (FII) Activity:

• FIIs have withdrawn ₹1.1 lakh crore from Indian equities in 2025.
• The Nifty index has declined 4% year-to-date due to this outflow.
• Any improvement in FII inflows could provide much-needed relief to the markets.

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Technical Outlook for Nifty & Bank Nifty

📊 Nifty 50:

• Currently consolidating between 22,250 – 22,650.
• A breakout above 22,650 could push Nifty towards 23,100+.
• A breakdown below 22,250 may lead to a retest of 21,800.

📊 Bank Nifty:

• Holding above 48,600 is crucial for an uptrend towards 50,000.
• A break below 47,500 could trigger a sharp correction.

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Trading Strategy for Next Week

📌 Investor Recommendations:

• Stick to high-quality stocks with attractive valuations for medium- to long-term investments.
• Remain cautiously optimistic as valuation easing and recent recovery provide stability.
• Prefer financials, energy, and metals for potential long positions.
• IT and auto sectors may continue underperforming.

📌 For Traders:

• Use options strategies in indices until a clear breakout emerges.
• Avoid aggressive positions in mid and small-cap stocks, as volatility remains high.

Conclusion: Market Consolidation Continues

With global economic uncertainty and heavy FII outflows, the Indian stock market remains in consolidation mode. The Fed policy decision and FII trends will be critical factors influencing market movement next week. Investors are advised to stay cautious but opportunistic, focusing on sectoral strength and long-term value.

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Indian stock market update, Sensex weekly wrap, Nifty 50 technical outlook, market trends India, US Fed policy impact, FII outflows India, Bank Nifty analysis, stock market investment tips, IT sector underperformance, auto sector stock trends