Investors to focus on upcoming quarterly earnings, US data as stock markets open on Monday: Experts

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 20 : In the absence of any major triggers in the stock market, investors are set to focus on the upcoming quarterly earnings of corporates and US economic data for direction, starting from Monday, as per experts.
The analysts say that investors are expected to react to results of banking heavyweights such as HDFC Bank and Kotak Bank. and market participants will be watchful for the second quarter results of companies like ITC, Hindustan Unilever, ICICI Bank, BPCL, HPCL, and Ultratech Cement.
"Despite the ongoing positivity in the US markets, the Indian markets have been largely unresponsive, a divergence likely to persist due to continued foreign fund outflows. Any change in the fund flow pattern would also be on the participants' radar," as per Ajit Mishra - SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd.
"Investors are awaiting more economic data for guidance," the Pantomath Capital Advisors Private Limited added in its observed citing the the economic data of US and rate cut hopes of the investors which was indicated by Federal Reserve Chief Jerome Powell.
The Indian stock markets remained under pressure for the third consecutive week, losing nearly half a percent as the corrective phase continued. While the benchmark indices initially showed signs of recovery, persistent selling by FIIs and a lackluster start to the earnings season weighed on sentiment, turning the bias negative.
A recovery in banking majors during the final session helped pare some losses, but both the Nifty and Sensex closed lower, at 24,854.05 and 81,224.7, respectively.
The secoral performance was mixed, with banking, financials, and realty posting decent gains, while auto, metals, and FMCG sectors were the top losers.
The broader indices reflected a similar trend, as the midcap index lost nearly a percent while smallcap closed slightly positive.
Foreign investors continued selling Indian equities during the trading sessions this week, though at a slower pace compared to the previous week, according to data from the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL).
Between October 14 and October 18, Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) sold Indian equities worth Rs19,065.79 crore. This marks a significant reduction from the previous week, when FPIs offloaded equities worth Rs31,568.03 crore.
Interestingly, despite the significant sell-off, key stock market indices like the Nifty 50 and Sensex have shown resilience. Both indices are down by only around 5 per cent from their 52-week highs, indicating strong support from domestic investors.
Data from the National Stock Exchange (NSE) shows that domestic investors, including Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs), have injected significant capital into the market. In October alone, they invested Rs74,176.20 crore in equities, helping to absorb the selling pressure from FPIs and preventing a more severe downturn.
The dynamic between foreign outflows and strong domestic participation underscores the growing importance of local investors in stabilising the Indian stock market, even during periods of heavy global investor selling.