The market is likely to remain range-bound with a bullish bias this week as

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nearly 200 companies listed on the National Stock Exchange are set to announce their June quarter results.

“The market is showing an upward sloping trend. This trend may continue this week, but one should not expect much. A small correction is likely, maybe in a week or maybe before that. What we have noticed is that in the past three quarters, the first 15 days have seen a rally in the market. The market has remained positive over a few more sessions before bottoming out at a level higher than the previous quarter. We expect the market to continue with this trend,” said Pankaj Pandey, head of research at ICICI Securities.

Pandey said results in overseas markets may not influence Indian bourses. “Our market has maintained a distance from the US market this year. We do not feel results of major US companies may offer any directional push to our market.”

On domestic results, Dilip Bhat, joint managing director of Prabhudas Lilladher, said, “The results for the first quarter will be decent. Investors will compare the June quarter performance with that of March quarter instead of the corresponding quarter last year to avoid any base year impact. We expect Indian companies to post a healthy 25 per cent growth in profit after tax (PAT). As far as the market is concerned, we may see an upside of 100 basis points in Nifty till September. On the downside, the Nifty could slip by 350 basis points during the same period.”

Among top companies Wipro, HDFC Bank, Jindal Saw, Idea Cellular and ITC, among others, will announce their quarterly results this week.

Meanwhile, food price inflation for the week ended July 3 rose to 12.81 per cent against 12.63 per cent in the previous week.

The market may keep a close watch on the inflation numbers as any further hike in food inflation may force the central bank to increase bank rates. The Reserve Bank of India will review its money policy on July 27. Subdued monsoon is also adding to the worries. “The rainfall for the week ended July 14 was approximately 24 per cent below long-period average. Southern, south-central and north-western states are likely to experience a dry spell, while parts of central and east India are expected to receive a fair amount of rainfall. Northwest India is also likely to see higher temperatures over the next week,” said Arjun G Nagrajan and Kashap Jhaveri of Emkay Global Financial Services.

The BSE Sensex rose 122.28 points, or 0.69 per cent, last week to end at 17,955.82. The 50-stock Nifty index added 41.45 points, or 0.77 per cent, up at 5,393.90.