Sensex, Nifty hit new records aided by strong foreign fund flows

Equity benchmark Sensex rallied 347 points to end at its fresh lifetime peak on Monday, tracking gains in index majors HDFC, HUL and ICICI Bank amid unabated foreign fund inflows.

After touching a record intra-day high of 45,458.92, the 30-share BSE index settled 347.42 points, or 0.77 per cent, higher at 45,426.97. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty rose 97.20 points, or 0.73 per cent, to an all-time closing high of 13,355.75. It touched its record intra-day peak of 13,366.65 in early trade.

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Bharti Airtel was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising around 3 per cent, followed by HUL, HDFC, ITC, IndusInd Bank, SBI, Sun Pharma, ONGC, Tech Mahindra, L&T and Asian Paints. On the other hand, Kotak Bank, Nestle India, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance and HDFC Bank were among the laggards.

“Domestic equities remained resilient and defied the weak global markets,” said Binod Modi, head – strategy, at Reliance Securities. Strong buying was seen across the pack towards the end of the day and thus Nifty gained for the fifth consecutive day. Volatility index once again declined reflecting little risk of ongoing rally, he added.

“Positive progress on COVID-19 vaccination and RBI’s strong commitment to support economic recovery are supporting market rally. Further, increased visibility of fiscal stimulus in the US with weak dollar may continue to attract FPIs to emerging markets, including India,” he stated.

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Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Tokyo ended in the red, while Seoul finished with gains. Stock exchanges in Europe were largely trading with losses in early deals. Meanwhile, the global oil benchmark Brent crude futures slipped 1.02 per cent to USD 48.75 per barrel.

The rupee dropped by 10 paise to settle at 73.90 (provisional) against the US currency  due to a stronger dollar in the overseas markets. At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit witnessed a volatile trading session. It opened at 73.79 and rose to an intra-day high of 73.70 and dropped to a low of 73.96. It finally closed at 73.90 a dollar, registering a decline of 10 paise over its previous close of 73.80. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenbacks strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.48 per cent to 91.13.