The week gone by was a short week with four trading sessions. Markets gained on three of the four sessions and lost on one. The week saw BSESENSEX gain 297.57 points or 0.39% to close at 77,100.47 points while NIFTY gained 42.90 points or 0.18% to close at 24,056.00 points. BANKNIFTY gained 491.30 points or 0.85% to close at 58,177.05 points. The broader indices saw BSE100 gain 0.13% while BSE200 and BSE500 lost 0.09% and 0.11%. BSEMIDCAP was up 0.26% while BSESMALLCAP gained 0.95%. The highs of the week were at 77,803.18 points on BSESENSEX and at 24,261.60 points on NIFTY while the lows were at 76,082.51 points and 23,784.95 points respectively. The lows were made on Tuesday while the highs were made on Thursday. 

The Indian Rupee lost 14 paisa or 0.15% to close at Rs 94.59 to the US Dollar. Dow Jones gained on three of the five trading sessions and lost on two. It gained 311.41 points or 0.60% to close at 51,876.11 points. 

There were three IPO’s which closed during the week. The first was Turtlemint Fintech Solutions Limited which just about managed to get subscribed. The issue overall was subscribed 1.24 times with QIB portion subscribed 1.63 times, HNI portion 0.56 and Retail portion 1.11 times.  The issue would list on Monday the 29th of June and is likely to be under pressure at open. 

The second was from Waterways Leisure Tourism Limited which closed on Thursday. The issue managed to get subscribed 1.72 times with QIB portion subscribed 1.06, HNI portion 1.23 times and Retail portion subscribed 4.4 times. This would list on Wednesday the 1st of July. 

The third issue was from Advit Jewels Limited which was clearly the show stopper. It was a small issue for Rs 165.16 crores in a price band of Rs 130-138. The issue was subscribed a massive 212.63 times with QIUB portion subscribed 174.98 times, HNI portion 502.25 times and Retail portion 95.3 times. There were 32.04 lac applications in all. This issue would list on Wednesday the 1st of July.

The fourth and final issue was from CSM Technologies Limited which is tapping the markets with its issue which has opened on Wednesday the 24th of June and would close on Monday the 29th of June. The issue is in a price band of Rs 107-113. The issue at end of day 2 is subscribed 0.66 times overall with QIB portion subscribed 0.38 times, HNI portion 1.09 times and Retail portion 0.76 times. 

The week ahead has two mainboard IPO’s opening and closing. The first is from cotton spinning company Aastha Spintex Limited which is tapping the markets with its issue which opens on Monday the 29th of June and closes on Wednesday the 1st of July. The issue consists of a fresh issue of 1.36 crore shares in a price band of Rs 125-136. The company is a ginning and spinning company from Gujarat with a ginning capacity of 12,000 tons and a spinning capacity of 26,000 spindles. The main object of the issue is to raise funds to acquire an existing spinning unit with a capacity of 36,000 spindles. While the present unit is in Halvad, the unit to be acquired is in Rajkot. The business is good and the unit to be acquired has interesting prospects as it is presently part of a diversified group where textiles is not a priority. With integration it is fair to assume that the acquired unit will start returning similar returns in course of time.  

The second IPO is from Knack Packaging Limited which is tapping the capital markets with its IPO for 2.71 crore shares in a price band of Rs 161-170. The issue would open on Wednesday the 1st of July and close on Friday the 3rd of July. The company is into PP bags and packaging material, and with innovation that it has achieved in its field produces significantly higher margins than peer set. 56% of its revenue comes from exports and this company was not affected with 50% tariff imposed as all its customers chose to continue buying the product. The company has a mix of own capacity and outsourced capacity which would be increased post the IPO. From its own capacity of 26,000 tons per annum, the company would increase its own capacity to about 70,000 tons. This capacity increase would happen over the next around 18 months. It would in the process stop procuring the outsourced capacity as it would have added its own lines. The issue is attractively priced and offers returns to investors with a medium term perspective. 

Primary markets seem to be getting back into shape. As long as promoters and PE investors leave money on the table things would be fine. The problem would start when they want it all for themselves. 

Though there is an agreement between the USA and Iran, there are a lot of sticky points. Firstly, it appears that Israel is a law unto itself and seems to be at crossroads with USA. Secondly it’s a sixty day ceasefire and there would be many hurdles to be accounted for before all is well. What we are seeing is the first of many hurdles on the way. Currently US has attacked and Iran has retaliated. Targets are the same. For Iran, its US assets in the Middle East while for USA it is Iran’s land and ships. Hormuz strait has become bigger than life and without doubt it is a big choke point. 

The week ahead sees June futures expire on the last day of the month i.e. 30th June. The current series lead is 142.30 points or 0.60%. Two days and just 142 points to play with, anything can happen. It’s delicately balanced between the bulls and the bears. Let’s see who is the victor in this series.

There is a political buzz that there could be a cabinet reshuffle with some major changes in some key portfolios. If something like this was to happen, one could see huge volatility in the markets which could give the opportunity for 24,600 to be taken out. Keep your fingers crossed. 

Coming to the markets in the week ahead. We have four listings and three IPO’s closing. This will give a fair state of mood and sentiment amongst investors. In terms of support, levels of 23,800 held on last week and the markets defended this level. Resistance of 24,600 is still some time and distance away and may be targeted in the coming week or weeks. One should refrain from having shorts in the market at this time as things are slowly but surely falling in place. Build on one’s portfolio and brace for the upcoming quarterly results due in about a fortnight from now.

Trade cautiously.

The week gone by was volatile and had plenty of action and drama as well. Many things happened on expected lines and it appeared in hind sight that it was designed for the capital markets. The issue from Space-X happened, NSE filed its DRHP and at the Reliance AGM, the IPO from JIO Platforms has also been announced and filed. More importantly we have one mainboard IPO which has opened on Friday and two more which would open on Tuesday. Eventful week no doubt. 

Markets gained on four of the five trading sessions and lost on one. BSESENSEX gained 1,274.95 points or 1.69% to close at 76,802.90 points while NIFTY gained 390.20 points or 1.65% to close at 24,013.10 points. BANKNIFTY gained 870.95 points or 1.53% to close at 57,685.75 points. The broader markets saw BSE100, BSE200 and BSE500 gain 1.97%, 2.16% and 2.35% respectively. BSEMIDCAP gained 5.68% while BSESMALLCAP was up 6.26%. The top sectorial gainer was BSE CAPGOODS which gained 5.97% while the top loser was BSEIT which lost 1.25%. As a matter of fact, BSEIT was the only sectorial loser. 

The highs and lows which were made on BSESENSEX and NIFTY during the week were as follows. Lows were made on Monday, the first day of the week itself at 76,140.44 points and 23,817.80 points. The highs were made on Thursday at 77,492.33 points and 24,189.25 points. 

The Indian Rupee gained 38 paisa or 0.40% to close at Rs 94.45 to the US Dollar. Dow Jones gained on three of the four trading sessions and lost on one. It gained 362.44 points or 0.71% to close at 51,564.70 points. The US FED has kept rates unchanged at its latest meeting held on 16th and 17th of June. Rates would continue at 3.5% to 3.75%. The decision was unanimous by a vote of 12-0. 

The issue from Turtlemint Fintech Solutions Limited has opened from Friday 19th June to Tuesday 23rd of June. The issue consists of a fresh issue of 4.35 crore shares and an offer for sale of 1.46 crore shares in a price band of Rs 144-152. The company is a digital Insurance distribution platform. It enables the need for guidance and advisory for selection of right insurance product for the masses, a subject which is of high importance. We all understand and agree that insurance is highly underpenetrated in India and needs to be used by a much larger population than presently what number is. Along with under penetration, knowledge of why insurance and what insurance is virtually missing. This platform addresses these issues. In terms of performance the company sold 2.18 crore policies in the period April 22 to December 25, a period of 45 months. In terms of financial performance, they are yet to break even and make profits. However, they have done the hard work and should report profits in the year ending March 2027. 

The company is a long term play and meant only for investors with a medium to long term duration. 

The second issue is from Jewellery maker Advit Jewels Limited which is tapping the markets with its entirely fresh issue for 119.68 lakh shares in a price band of Rs 130-138. The issue opens on Tuesday the 23rd of June and closes on Thursday the 25th of June. The company is a manufacturer of exquisite Jadau Jewellery including, polki, minakari and emeralds and precious stones. This is legacy Jewellery which is hand crafted by skilled artisans and worn by brides of the HNI category and men as well. Jewellery is bound together by gold and various stones, emeralds and other precious stones are set in 14K and 18K gold. This Jewellery is not commercial gold Jewellery and is rarely recycled but passed down through generations. What began as bridal wear by the Marwari and Gujarati communities, is now much more widely accepted and is part of any celebrity wedding. Margins at the PAT level in this company are at 20% only because of the extensive nature of hand crafted Jewellery. Currently the company is basically a B to B player but post the issue intends to enter the B to C space as well which is highly lucrative. It premier showroom in Jaipur is expected to open around Diwali 2026 and would be a big boost for the company. The share is meant for medium term investment and it has interesting prospects looking at the business growth plan. 

The third and final issue is from Waterways Leisure Tourism Limited which is tapping the capital markets with its entirely fresh issue of Rs 585 crores. The company is a cruise liner and currently operates with one ship, MV Empress. It has contracted two more ships which would operate in fiscal 2027 and 2028, making a total of three ships. With these three ships, the company would be able to offer multiple choices and routes to customers domestically and internationally. The government has also been encouraging the operation of its inland waterways and passenger terminals have been built to facilitate passenger comfort. The ship operates 365 days a year and is currently offering various packages across one day, two days, three days extending to five and six day packages. Its occupancy is around the 90% level and the company is profitable for the year ended March 2026. The PE multiple of the company is at 96.01 to 100.75 times its earnings for March 26 financial year. There is no other competitor operating in this space making it virtually a monopoly. For sake of comparison, the company has compared itself with listed Hospitality companies. The addition of the second ship in little over a quarter and the third ship 5-6 quarters later, would add to the companies operational excellence as flexibility in routes and capacity would be available. Inventory of over three times would then be available on offer. 

The broad terms of the Iran-USA agreement entail a ceasefire of 60 days between the US and Israel on one side and Iran and Lebanon on the other. Further the Strait of Hormuz would be opened up and it be cleaned of all mines. Thirdly all frozen money of Iran would be released and sanctions imposed on Iranian oil be lifted. Issues about operations and nuclear would be debated and discussed over the next sixty days. While the digital signing happened some three days ago, things are again at a standstill because Israel attacked Lebanon.  I believe the final discussion will be time consuming and contentious. One step forward, two steps backward and so on. It will keep people occupied with no major impact. It would however offer trading opportunities. 

Coming to the markets they will look to settle down in a broad band. It appears that currently support exists at around 23,800 points and resistance at around 24,600 points. For markets to become bullish, we need to cross 24,600 decisively. Can it happen right away? Looks doubtful. Signs however are good. FPI’s have stopped selling and are making small purchases instead. This means that their view is changing. The current quarter has been a challenging one for almost all concerned. Results for the quarter April-June 2026 will start rolling out in another fortnight. One hopes that we would have some positive companies showing promise emerging. India has signed some trade agreements and hopefully even the US deal would happen sometime now. All of this augurs well going forward. 

The strategy for the week ahead would be to play in the broad market band of 23,800-24,600 points and one can also take overnight positions as there is substantial clarity now available. For any decisive breakout or breakdown, levels have been spelt out which makes matter clear. 

Trade cautiously and maybe with the primary market becoming active all over again we should see better traction in the markets as well.