"Nifty has been moving higher while remaining around the upper band of the rising channel on the daily timeframe. The trend remains positive; however, the proximity to the resistance level attracts selling pressure in the market. Over the short term, the Nifty may witness a consolidation. On the lower end, support is visible at 16500; while resistance is likely to be there at 16750-16800."

"Increased foreign investment and solid quarterly results are increasing domestic demand. Among broad-based buying, banking stocks outshined due to healthy quarterly earnings. European markets traded with modest gains, while investors digested the latest ECB monetary policy as it joined the global peers in policy tightening."

Indian indices ended at an over 2-month high on Friday led by gains in banking and financial stocks. The Sensex ended 390 points higher at 56,072 while the Nifty rose 114 points to settle at 16,719. Both benchmarks ended over 4 percent higher for the week, highest weekly gain since January 2021.

Broader markets underperformed indices with the midcap index ending flat and smallcap index settling 0.37 percent higher. Among sectors, both Nifty Bank and Nifty Fin Services rose over a percent each while auto and FMCG indices also contributed to the gains. However, Nifty IT and Nifty Pharma ended in red for the day.

Gross interest income saw a growth of 4.8% QoQ (+15.6% YoY) to Rs. 37,273cr, while interest expenses grew 7.4% QoQ (+15.0% YoY). Net interest margin (NIM) remained stable sequentially at 4.0%. Restructuring of stressed assets under the RBI Resolution Framework for Covid-19 stood at Rs. 10,750cr. The bank delivered a steady performance during the quarter. The merger with HDFC Limited remains on track and, post completion, will further strengthen its position in the banking space. We remain positive on the stock and retain our BUY rating, with a lower target price of Rs. 1,705, based on 2.9x FY24E BVPS.

Just when the aviation sector was emerging from the Covid-19 shock, the surge in oil prices and signs of economic slowdown appeared as fresh headwinds, hitting the stocks of the sector. Besides, cut-throat competition is also keeping the sectoral players under pressure. Shares of InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo) hit their fresh 52-week high of ₹2,379 on November 16, 2021, but have been falling since then. At present, the stock is more than 23% down from its 52-week high. Year-to-date, the stock is down 9% while the benchmark Sensex is down about 4%.

Indian shares touched a seven-week high on Friday and were set for their best week since mid-March, as banks and auto stocks rallied and foreign fund investments into equities strengthened. Banks and automobiles have been major drivers of the recent rally on the Nifty 50 index and have helped it gain more than 5% so far this month. The bank index, meanwhile, has climbed 9%, while the auto index is up around 8% in July. "Global markets have bounced back ... There is continuous moderation of prices in commodities, which has helped boost the risk sentiment," said Gaurav Dua, head of capital market strategy at Sharekhan.

European stocks dropped Friday as disappointment over technology earnings stoked worries about the economic outlook and took some of the shine off this week’s global equity rebound.

The Stoxx 600 Index ticked lower after a gauge of manufacturing activity in France fell more than forecast. An Asian share index fluctuated in listless performance across the region after a China tech jump fizzled. Nasdaq 100 contracts pared losses to trade 0.7% lower, while those on the S&P 500 slipped 0.3%

Shares of Hindustan Foods soared nearly 15 per cent to ₹568 on the BSE in Friday’s trade, zooming as much as 37 per cent in the last two trading sessions, after the stock turned ex-date for stock split from face value of ₹10 to ₹2 each on Thursday. The stock of diversified company traded at its 52-week high level. In past one month, the stock has gained 63 per cent as compared to 7.7 per cent rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. Hindustan Foods had fixed July 22, 2022 as the record date for the purpose of sub-division of every 1 equity share of the face value of ₹10 each into 5 equity shares of the face value of ₹2 each.

73 companies have announced bonus issues so far in 2022, the second highest since 2010 as Indian companies are looking to reward loyal investors after a good performance post the COVID-19 pandemic, Economic Times reported. Indian Oil, Varun Beverages, AU Small Finance Bank, Ajanta Pharma, Nazara Technologies, Minda Industries, Torrent Pharma, GMM Pfaudler, and REC are among 67 companies that have either issued bonus shares or announced record dates for considering expansion of the equity base through bonus stock. The record date is the cut-off set by the company to compile the list of shareholders eligible for the bonus shares. Further, six more companies, including Sonata Software, have called board meetings to consider bonus shares, taking the total to 73.

Shares of HDFC Asset Management Company (AMC) declined nearly 3 percent after reports emerged that Prashant Jain has stepped down as the chief investment officer of the company. Jain, who is one of India’s longest-serving mutual-fund managers and the only one to have managed a mutual fund scheme since inception for 28 years.

Shares of Gujarat State Fertilizers & Chemicals (GSFC) soared 15 percent to ₹163.80 on the BSE in Friday’s intraday trade, on the back of heavy volumes after the company reported strong June quarter results (Q1FY23), with consolidated net profit more-than-doubled at ₹345.81 crore, supported by healthy operational income. The fertilizer company had reported a net profit of ₹136.11 crore in a year ago quarter (Q1FY22).

Yes Bank shares continued to see buyer interest for a fifth straight day on July 22, rising 18% in July amid reports that Carlyle and Advent were close to acquiring a large stake in the firm. This comes after the private lender tied up with JC Flowers Asset Reconstruction Co for the sale of its bad loans. Media reports have said Carlyle's and Advant’s top brass have held a series of meetings this week with the senior management of Yes Bank and the State Bank of India, the largest shareholder in the private lender, as well as Reserve Bank of India (RBI) officials to fine-tune the contours of the deal. The potential investment size could be $1 billion, the Economic Times reported.

Multiplex operator PVR reported a strong recovery in box office business, food and beverage revenue in Q1 FY23, after facing a severe impact on business due to the pandemic in the last two years. The April-May-June period saw the best-ever quarterly performance across all parameters in Q1 FY23, the company said. PVR has reported a consolidated net profit of ₹53.38 crore as against a loss of ₹219.44 crore in June 2021. Revenue from operation stood at ₹981.40 crore, up 1552.47 percent from ₹59.39 crore a year back.

Shares of Can Fin Homes surged 9 percent to ₹589.70 on the BSE in Friday's intra-day trade after the company reported a healthy set of earnings in the June quarter, with profit after tax (PAT) jumping 49 percent year-on-year (YoY) at ₹162 crore driven by provision write-backs. Pre-provision operating profit (PPOP) was up 10 percent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) and 40 percent YoY to ₹215 crore.

With opening dips reversing exactly from 16485, our turnaround point for yesterday, bears never got any chance for the rest of the day, keeping the trend firmly enroute 16800, the near term target set on Monday. This may get extended to 17000 or beyond in the coming days, but favoured view for the day expects bulls to be challenged on approach to 16690-710 region. While major falls are not expected unless 16485 gives away, the prospects of the same in the next week may rise, should Nifty find unable to push beyond the 16690-710 region.

"The biggest positive for the bulls now is the complete reversal of FII action from relentless selling till July to sustained buying now, though only for 4 days in a row. This means the June low of 15813 is unlikely to be broken any time soon. The smart recovery in the Nifty Midcap by 12. 73% in the last one month is an indication that this recovery in the market is widespread and, therefore, strong. At least, for the short run, the domestic investors who bought when the FIIs sold, have emerged smarter.

Market action in the near-term will be in response to the results of the big boys RIL, ICICI Bank, Infosys and Kotak Bank to be released soon. Results are likely to be positive for markets.

Reliance Industries is expected to report strong earnings for the quarter ended June on July 22, aided by a sharp rise in gross refining margins and strength in its organised retail business. The oil-to-telecom major is likely to report a 105.7 YoY increase in consolidated net profit to ₹25,238.8 crore. Analysts expect RIL’s gross refining margins to have averaged $22 a barrel in the June quarter, double the level seen in the March quarter. Margins have expanded at a faster rate, thanks to reported processing of discounted Ural crude oil from Russia and exporting the same to Europe and the US.

Brokerage firm Edelweiss Securities has maintained a ‘buy’ call on FMCG major Hindustan Unilever (HUL) and raised the target price to 3,050 from ₹2,785, implying an upside potential of 17%. HUL beat street estimates to clock an 11% growth in June quarter profit as price hikes lifted revenues, even as sales at India’s largest packaged goods maker grew a more tepid 6%.

“HUL saw strong gains in both value and volume terms. Inflation continues to put margins under pressure in Q2FY23. Skincare was well above pre-covid levels while colour cosmetics was slightly lower than pre-covid. Benign palm oil prices can lead to price drops for some categories. We also expect HUL to benefit from rising urban and out-of-home consumption,” said Edelweiss Securities.

Indian indices opened higher on Friday, extending gains for the sixth straight session despite weakness in the Asian peers after the European Central Bank raised rates by 50 bps for the first time in 8 years. Back home, all sectors added to the gains with banking, IT, metals contributing the most. At 9:15 am, the Sensex was up 191 points at 55,872 while the Nifty rose 63 points to trade at 16,669. Broader markets outperformed with both the midcap and smallcap indices up around half a percent each.

Reliance Industries, UltraTech Cement, JSW Steel, HDFC Asset Management Company, Bandhan Bank, Coforge, Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals, Finolex Industries, Supreme Petrochem are some firms that will be in focus ahead of June 2022 quarter earnings on July 22.

Indian indices ended higher for the fifth straight session on Thursday led by gains in financial and IT stocks amid a mixed trend in global equities. The BSE Sensex rose 284.42 points or 0.51 percent to settle at 55,681.95 while the broader Nifty ended 84.40 points or 0.51 percent higher at 16,605.25.

Shares in the Asia-Pacific fell Friday as investors digest Japan’s inflation data. The Nikkei 225 declined 0.36% and the Topix index slipped 0.36 percent. South Korea’s Kospi was fractionally lower. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.12 percent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan sat just above the flatline.

Wall Street's main indices rose on Thursday boosted by a late-afternoon rally and gains in heavyweight growth stocks, including Tesla. The tech-heavy Nasdaq added 1.4 percent to lead the gains while the S&P 500 closed at its highest level since June 9. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.5 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 162.06 points, or 0.51 percent, to 32,036.9, the S&P 500 gained 39.05 points, or 0.99 percent, to 3,998.95 and the Nasdaq Composite added 161.96 points, or 1.36 percent, to 12,059.61.

At 8:20 am, the SGX Nifty was trading 9 points or 0.05 percent higher at 16,626, indicating a flat opening for the Indian markets.