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Technical analysts expect the Nifty to extend Friday’s upward momentum, potentially reaching the 24,500 zone. However, a break below 23,500 could trigger selling pressure, dragging the index toward 23,300–23,000 levels. Stocks such as L&T Technology Services, Bharti Airtel, HCL Tech, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Ipca Labs, Divis Labs, DLF, and National Aluminium show bullish chart patterns, indicating potential upside moves, according to analysts.RAJESH PALVIYAHEAD TECHNICAL DERIVATIVES, AXIS SECURITIESWhere is Nifty headed this week? After seven consecutive weeks of negative close, the index has formed a small bullish candle with a long lower shadow on weekly chart, indicating buying support at lower levels. Chart pattern suggests that if Nifty crosses and sustains above 24,000, it could experience buying pressure, pushing the index toward 24,300-24,600. However, if the index breaks below 23,500, it may face selling pressure, leading to a decline toward 23,300-23,000. Nifty is currently positioned above its 200-day simple moving average of 23,593, which indicates a positive bias in the medium term.What should investors do? We expect IT, pharma, real estate, and metals to show a bullish trend. Attention should be on stocks like HCL Tech, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Ipca Labs, Divis Lab, DLF, Godrej Properties, JSW Steel, and National Aluminium for potential upside momentum. This week, traders can implement a moderately bullish strategy with reduced premium outflow and a lower break even point called the Call Spread of 28 Nov expiry. Buy one lot of the 23,900 Call for Rs 190 and sell one lot of the 24,200 Call for Rs 67. This results in a net outflow, or maximum loss, limited to Rs 3,075. If Nifty closes above the breakeven point of 24,023 on expiry, the strategy will start generating profits up to Rs 4,425PRITESH MEHTAEXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT – RESEARCH, YES SECURITIESWhere is the Nifty headed? Nifty found respite around the confluence of support zone which is a three-digit Gann number of 23,300, a 61.8% retracement of its entire move from a low of election day outcome to all-time high and bullish crossover in our customised breadth of Nifty & Bank Nifty. We expect the index to build on Friday’s comeback and gradually move higher towards the 24,500 zone. Our customised Nifty top 10 index has rebounded off the support zone, implying strength in index biggies. 23,300 is likely to act as major support. Sustenance of Bank Nifty above 200-DMA is essential for follow-through moves.What should investors do? Nifty IT has been a major mover and an outperformer. The ratio of IT vs Nifty is trading comfortably above the 2023 peak, we expect strength to persist in this space. TechM and HCLTech are likely to witness followthrough moves of 8-10% in the next few weeks. Nifty Metal index is holding onto multiple support zones. Pullback trade is likely to play out in this space. National Aluminium is outperforming the metals index, we expect the strength to continue. National Aluminium has seen a series of double top buys and a bullish turtle break, suggesting a move of 10%.RAHUL SHARMAHEAD - TECHNICAL & DERIVATIVE RESEARCH, JM FINANCIAL SERVICESWhere is the Nifty headed? The weekly chart shows a piercing candle with a 50% retracement of the previous week’s red candle. Friday’s momentum suggests Nifty could head towards 24,200–24,400. However, this should be viewed as a trading bounce unless significant changes in market data occur over the next few days. Nifty has a support level of 23,800, and 23,500; and resistance levels of 24,200, 24,400, and 24,770. Expect Bank Nifty to join the upmove once it crosses 51,400. Additionally, the IT index has shown a fresh breakout after 2.5 months of sideways movement, indicating that IT stocks may outperform going forward. What should investors do? Investors can look to exit positions in which they have been stuck around the 24,200-24,400 mark. Alternatively, sector rotation can be done, especially into IT stocks. Buy Bharti Airtel: After weeks of correction, signs of a reversal are emerging. Targets Rs 1,640 and Rs 1,670. Maintain a stop loss at Rs 1,510. Breaking out from two months of underperformance, L&T Technology Services shows potential for targets of Rs 5,700 and Rs 5,800. Maintain a stop loss at Rs 5,150 for long positions.

MUMBAI: India's younger generation is not obsessed with fair skin but, rather, favours brands offering skin free of blemishes, said L'Oreal global chief executive Nicolas Hieronimus, terming it a generational shift in a country where fairness products still make up a quarter of total skincare sales."Part of what we call brightening is eliminating spots that create irregularities. A makeup artiste told me, 'When I am making up a bride, I make sure the mother is not in the room because she's trying to teach me what to do, she's always the one saying to make the bride fairer'," Hieronimus told ET in an exclusive interview. "I think the young generation is changing and it's good.""If you want darker skin or fairer skin because you think it shows good health, it's your choice. (But) it shouldn't be imposed by society or external pressure," he said. "If you look at all our ads, we promote a total diversity of skin tones, hair, hair colour etc."According to chief of the world's largest cosmetics firm, which owns Maybelline and Garnier brands, the region historically saw people working in the fields being dark-skinned and the nobles, untanned. This led to the belief that high society had fair skin. "But if you take Europe or France, it's the contrary," said Hieronimus.Digitalisation Increasing AwarenessThere, "people who have money go on holiday and take a tan. It's very generational," said Hieronimus, adding that the company's brightening products are not for lightening skin or fairness, but to give it an even tone.With influencers-turned-beauty gurus popularising products from cleansers and moisturisers to serums and lotions - with many claimed to be backed by dermatologists - younger consumers, especially Gen Z, are far more conscious of what they use on their skin compared to millennials and Gen X.According to L'Oreal, Indians have always aspired for beauty, but what has changed of late is widespread digitalisation. The consumer spends more than seven hours on smartphones and is very much aware of the latest trends in developed markets such as France and the US."Gen Zs are super experts. They are online and extremely aware of international brands, local brands, and the different routines. So, it's accelerating," said Hieronimus. "That's why I say India's time is now because I see this new generation who is way more sophisticated and knowledgeable about beauty in general. They are buying into more sophisticated routines."The surge in ecommerce and, more recently, quick commerce, have been a game changer since until a few years ago, L'Oreal's premium products were mostly sold in modern trade and supermarkets, limiting reach. "Anybody can have any product in 10 minutes and that is spectacular. The availability of information, knowledge about beauty, about what is a serum, what is a liner, a primer, as well as the capacity to shop these products online has tremendously exploded after that," said the 60-year-old executive."What I see - like in many countries, but particularly true in India - is this blend of aspiration to get the best that the world has to offer, mixed with Indian pride and traditions," Hieronimus said.The Beauty of IndiaL'Oreal has about 8% share of India's face care market and a total of about 10%, including ecommerce, in a market dominated by Hindustan Unilever's more than 40% share.The French cosmetics firm is the market leader in the hair colour segment and has, over the past decade, trained about 3.3 million hairdressers.The company entered India three decades ago, selling affordable packs and sachets, including its largest selling product, Garnier hair colour. Its reach is, however, limited to only about 230 million people who have a purchasing power parity of over $20 a day."It will be 310 million people in 2027. There are 60 million inhabitants in France, and it is my third-largest market. So, it's a lot of people, and it's a lot of very young people. One of the other specificities of India is that men are also very much into beauty and interested in grooming. So, there's big potential," said the global CEO.India currently accounts for just over 1% of L'Oreal's annual sales of over 41 billion euros, making it the 15th largest market for the company worldwide. It is targeting an annual revenue of 1 billion euros in India in the next few years, when it expects the country to rank among its top 10 markets.L'Oreal believes the stars are perfectly aligned in India, with stable politics, a dynamic economy with a growing base of affluent middle-class consumers highly aware of global beauty trends, more women in the workforce and surging online retail growth."There are 820 million internet users in India, and these people are connected. They are discovering products online in a country that is very stable and are optimistic. For beauty, confidence and optimism are very important drivers," said Hieronimus."And the last reason why the stars are aligned in India is that every year, I see more women working. It's true that women working is a strong driver of beauty because they want to present their best self in the work environment, as they do in their private life. All these put together, creates a very particular moment for acceleration and for sophistication of beauty," he said.Hieronimus, who is on a three-day visit to India, has spent over 38 years at L'Oreal, becoming the chief executive in 2021.Not Skin DeepFocused beauty brands such as L'Oreal, Mamaearth, Nivea and Nykaa currently have a combined 33% share of the Indian market, which is expected to rise to 42% in five years. Established firms such as HUL and Procter & Gamble currently account for two-thirds of the market and will see their shares fall 9 percentage points to 58% by 2027, according to a joint report by Redseer Strategy Consultants and Peak XV.Apart from global rivals such as Unilever, Shiseido and Estee Lauder, the Indian market has seen a flurry of local brands such as Minimalist, Sugar Cosmetics and Plum.Many of these brands sell their products disclosing active ingredients at a granular level of the exact percentage of acid used in the product.Hieronimus said, "Anybody can put an ingredient in a product like salicylic acid or collagen. But consumers are more demanding about products and are not just settling for very basic things. That's where L'Oreal has the best cards to play, and that's where we really thrive."

Rising interest burden and lower growth in operating profit have taken a toll on the interest coverage ratio of India Inc at the aggregate level. For a sample of 1,950 companies excluding those in the banking and finance sector, it fell to a seven quarter low of 4.8% in the September quarter. It was 5.7% in the previous quarter and 5.4% in the year-ago quarter. The ratio is calculated as profit before interest and tax (PBIT) divided by interest outgo. It reflects the ease with which a company can cover interest expenses or service debt; a higher ratio is desirable.“Interest costs have risen sharply year-on-year due to higher (interest) rates and working capital requirements,” said Deepak Jasani, retail research head, HDFC Securities. For the sample, interest cost increased at a three quarter high of 7.2% year-on-year in the three months to September at a time when the aggregate top line growth was at a three quarter low of 4.9% amid lower government expenditure due to elections and flood situations in various parts of the country during the monsoon season. In addition, raw material costs as a percentage of revenue increased to 35.1% from 34% in the year-ago quarter. This affected EBIT, which fell by 4.9% year-on-year. It in turn weakened the interest coverage ratio for the quarter. While interest rates in the economy have remained firm, aggregate borrowings by companies increased due to higher working capital requirements. Net debt for a sample of BSE 500 companies excluding lenders increased by 13.9% year-on-year to Rs 29.8 lakh crore at the end of September 2024. 115634924 In the coming quarters, a recovery in revenue growth and benign input costs will be crucial for a pick up in the interest coverage. For the September quarter, slowdown in consumption and poor show by metals and oil and gas sectors affected the overall performance of the sample. Analysts expect a recovery in government spending in the second half of the current fiscal year, which may help companies in staging a recovery.