Weekly Update- 20 March 2026

NIFTY50

Nifty ended the week down by 36.6 points (-0.16%). The week began on a positive note, with the index witnessing buying from lower levels and sustaining upward momentum for the first three sessions, reflecting improving sentiment. However, the trend reversed sharply on Thursday, when the market faced heavy selling pressure from higher levels, resulting in a steep decline of nearly 700 points in a single session. This sharp fall indicated profit booking and cautious positioning at higher levels. On the final day of the week, the index moved in a sideways range, suggesting consolidation after the sharp correction. For the coming week, key resistance is placed around 23,500, while strong support lies near 22,700, which will be crucial to hold for stability in the near term.

BANKNIFTY

Bank Nifty ended the week down by 330 points (-0.62%). The week started on a positive note, with the index witnessing buying from lower levels and sustaining momentum for the first three sessions. However, sentiment reversed sharply on Thursday, when the index saw intense selling pressure from higher levels, leading to a steep decline of nearly 1,875 points. On the following day, the index moved in a sideways range, indicating consolidation after the sharp fall. Overall, Bank Nifty underperformed Nifty during the week, reflecting relative weakness in the banking space. For the coming week, key resistance is placed around 54,800, while support lies near 52,000.

TOP GAINING SECTOR

NIFTY AUTO was top gainer sector for the week

Major gainers were:-

EICHERMOT:- up by 2.49%

BHARATFORGE:- up by 2.17%

BAJAJ AUTO:- up by 1.98%

HEROMOTOCO:- up by 1.33%

TOP LOSING SECTOR

NIFTY IND DEFENCE was top losing sector for the week

Major losers were:-

SOLARINDS:- down by 9.24%

BDL:- down by 4.73%

HAL:- down by 3.37%

BEL:- down by 3.03%

IMPORTANT NEWS

• Foreign portfolio investors pulled out Rs 52,703 crore from Indian equities in the first half of March, with financials bearing the brunt. Broad-based selling, rising crude oil prices and geopolitical tensions weighed on markets, while select inflows into capital goods and metals indicate continued interest in domestic capex and infrastructure themes.

• The country’s coal imports dropped 4.2 per cent to 213.10 million tonnes (MT) in the April-January period of the current fiscal year and with seaborne prices showing an uptick, imports are likely to remain subdued in the near term.

• On Monday, March 23, Castrol India, India Glycols Ltd. and Power Finance Corp will trade ex-dividend and mark the record date. Castrol India has approved a final dividend of Rs 5.25 per share. India Glycols will give an interim dividend of Rs 7.50 per share, while PFC has an interim dividend of Rs 3.25 per share.
  
• If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!,” said Trump in a post on Truth Social.

• OpenAI plans to almost double its headcount by the end of 2026 as it seeks to fend off competition from companies such as Anthropic PBC and Alphabet Inc.’s Google, according to the Financial Times.