Nifty has support at 5020

The bulls extended their winning streak to the seventh week and the Sensex has now gained a massive 25.7 per cent (3,632 points) during the period.

The Sensex began last week on a cautious note and dropped to a low of 17,145. However, unabated buying thereafter saw the index come within striking distance of another milestone of 18,000. The index hit a fresh all-time intra-day high of 17,979, just 21 points short of the 18,000-mark.

The intra-week swing for the index was a good 835 points. The Sensex finally ended the week with a gain of 2.8 per cent (482 points) at 17,773.

This could be the key week for the markets, as the earnings season kicks off. The markets may rally further or consolidate at current levels in case the results met expectations. However, in the event of any disappointment, the markets may take a sharp dip.

The Sensex is moving in unchartered territory with key support at the 17,000 levels, a break of which could see the index dropping to 15,800. On the upside, the index has a potential to rally up to 19,000.

The index may face resistance around 18,090-18,190-18,290 this week, while it is likely to find support around 17,455-17,355-17,255 in case of a downside.

After moving in a range of 260-odd points, the Nifty touched a fresh peak at 5261 and finally ended with gains of 164 points at 5186. It has now gained a whopping 26.2 per cent (1,078 points) in seven weeks.

The Nifty may face resistance around 5285-5315-5345 this week, while there would be downside support around 5085-5055-5025.

The Nifty has strong support at 5020. If the index breaks this level, it may slide up to 4780.

The outlook for the markets will remain bullish in the short-term as long as the Sensex and the Nifty hold their key support levels of 17,000 and 5020 respectively.