Sensex ends above 59k for first time, Nifty scales fresh high

Indian equity benchmark Sensex soared past 59k-mark for the first time, while Nifty scaled fresh lifetime high on Thursday, led by gains in index heavyweights RIL, ITC, ICICI Bank, SBI and HDFC Bank. The 30-share BSE index rallied 417.96 points or 0.71% to close at record 59,141.16, while the NSE Nifty settled at a new closing high of 17,629.50, up 110.05 points or 0.63%. What's even more interesting is that it has taken merely 9 sessions for the Sensex to move from 58,000 to 59,000 mark. IndusInd Bank, surging over 7%, was the top Sensex gainer followed by ITC, SBI, Reliance Industries, Kotak Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank. TCS, Tech Mahindra, Tata Steel, Bharti Airtel, HCL Tech and Dr Reddy’s were among the laggards. Most sectoral indices on the NSE closed in the green. Nifty PSU Bank, spurting over 5%, was the top sectoral gainer followed by Nifty Private Bank, Nifty Bank and Nifty FMCG. On the ither hand, Nifty Metal, Nifty Media and Nifty IT closed in the red. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman will hold a press conference at 5 pm today. She is expected to announce measures supporting the proposed bad bank. "The Sensex and the Nifty moved up to the highest levels ever during the trading session today, supported by a significant up-move in the public sector banks close to 5 %, and the private sector banks rising by 2 % . The PLI for the auto sector, greater clarity on the telecom dues with the moratorium announcement , and the likely announcement of guarantees for the Bad Bank soon, etc. were the factors that helped the markets rise higher," said Joseph Thomas, Head of Research, Emkay Wealth Management. "This was again supported by the muted third wave of the pandemic so far, and the aggressive vaccination program by the government, all have added to the positive sentiment. There is also comfort from the fact that with inflation moderating in August from higher levels registered in the last couple of months, the RBI persisting with its accommodative stance for longer time looks more probable," he added. In Asia, stock exchanges in Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong ended lower.