Sensex and Nifty Reach New Record Highs

Sensex and Nifty Reach New Record Highs. Image/Mint

Sensex and Nifty Reach New Record Highs

The Indian equity benchmarks, the Sensex and the Nifty, scaled new record highs on Friday, driven by gains in banking, auto, and IT heavyweights. Notable contributors to this surge included HDFC Bank, TCS, and Mahindra and Mahindra. The positive momentum in the market was largely attributed to encouraging global signals, particularly after recent data suggested a potential revival in China’s economy.

China’s Economic Optimism

According to Reuters, recent data revealed that Chinese retail sales and industrial output for August surpassed the expectations of economists, contributing to a more positive outlook for China’s economic recovery.

Central Banks Rethinking Tightening Policies

Furthermore, there is a growing belief that major central banks worldwide may reconsider their monetary tightening campaigns, given the impact of previous rate hikes on their respective economies. The European Central Bank (ECB) recently raised its key interest rate to 4 percent, and market attention has now shifted to the upcoming Federal Reserve (Fed) meeting in the United States scheduled for the following Wednesday.

Record Highs Achieved

On Thursday, both the Sensex and the Nifty reached fresh record highs, with the Sensex touching 67,927.23 and the Nifty hitting 20,222.45. The Sensex ultimately closed at 67,838.63, representing a gain of 320 points or 0.47 percent, while the Nifty settled at 20,192.35, up by 89 points or 0.44 percent. This marked new closing highs for both indices.

Performance of Mid and Small Caps

However, mid-cap and small-cap stocks did not perform as robustly as the benchmark indices. The BSE Midcap index registered a modest increase of 0.09 percent, while the BSE Smallcap index saw a 0.27 percent rise.

Market Capitalization Growth

During the trading session, a total of 236 stocks, including Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, HCL Tech, Mahindra and Mahindra, TCS, Tech Mahindra, Wipro, and UltraTech Cement, reached their fresh 52-week highs on the BSE. The overall market capitalization of firms listed on the BSE increased from approximately ₹322.2 lakh crore to nearly ₹323.4 lakh crore in a single session, making investors wealthier by nearly ₹1.2 lakh crore.

Weekly Performance

For the week, both the Sensex and the Nifty recorded gains of nearly 2 percent each. Conversely, the BSE Smallcap index declined by over 1 percent, while the Midcap index saw a 0.5 percent decrease for the week ending September 15.

Crude Oil Prices

In the commodities market, crude oil prices continued to rise, with Brent Crude trading near the $94 per barrel mark around 3:50 pm.

Top Nifty Gainers and Losers

Among the Nifty pack, 32 of the 50 stocks ended with gains. Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp, and Mahindra and Mahindra emerged as the top gainers, while BPCL, Hindustan Unilever, and Asian Paints were the top losers.

Sectoral Performance

The Nifty Auto index led the sectoral gains with a rise of 1.58 percent, followed by Nifty IT with a gain of 0.94 percent. Nifty Bank also ended positively, up by 0.50 percent. Nifty Private Bank and PSU Bank indices registered decent gains. In contrast, Nifty Oil & Gas, FMCG, and Realty indices ended the day with losses.

Market Outlook

The upbeat performance of the Indian stock market reflects optimism about economic recovery and ongoing policy decisions by central banks, both domestically and globally. Investors are closely watching central bank meetings and data releases for further cues.

The Indian equity benchmarks, the Sensex and the Nifty, scaled new record highs on Friday, driven by gains in banking, auto, and IT heavyweights. Notable contributors to this surge included HDFC Bank, TCS, and Mahindra and Mahindra. The positive momentum in the market was largely attributed to encouraging global signals, particularly after recent data suggested a potential revival in China’s economy.

China’s Economic Optimism

According to Reuters, recent data revealed that Chinese retail sales and industrial output for August surpassed the expectations of economists, contributing to a more positive outlook for China’s economic recovery.

Central Banks Rethinking Tightening Policies

Furthermore, there is a growing belief that major central banks worldwide may reconsider their monetary tightening campaigns, given the impact of previous rate hikes on their respective economies. The European Central Bank (ECB) recently raised its key interest rate to 4 percent, and market attention has now shifted to the upcoming Federal Reserve (Fed) meeting in the United States scheduled for the following Wednesday.

Record Highs Achieved

On Thursday, both the Sensex and the Nifty reached fresh record highs, with the Sensex touching 67,927.23 and the Nifty hitting 20,222.45. The Sensex ultimately closed at 67,838.63, representing a gain of 320 points or 0.47 percent, while the Nifty settled at 20,192.35, up by 89 points or 0.44 percent. This marked new closing highs for both indices.

Performance of Mid and Small Caps

However, mid-cap and small-cap stocks did not perform as robustly as the benchmark indices. The BSE Midcap index registered a modest increase of 0.09 percent, while the BSE Smallcap index saw a 0.27 percent rise.

Market Capitalization Growth

During the trading session, a total of 236 stocks, including Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, HCL Tech, Mahindra and Mahindra, TCS, Tech Mahindra, Wipro, and UltraTech Cement, reached their fresh 52-week highs on the BSE. The overall market capitalization of firms listed on the BSE increased from approximately ₹322.2 lakh crore to nearly ₹323.4 lakh crore in a single session, making investors wealthier by nearly ₹1.2 lakh crore.

Weekly Performance

For the week, both the Sensex and the Nifty recorded gains of nearly 2 percent each. Conversely, the BSE Smallcap index declined by over 1 percent, while the Midcap index saw a 0.5 percent decrease for the week ending September 15.

Crude Oil Prices

In the commodities market, crude oil prices continued to rise, with Brent Crude trading near the $94 per barrel mark around 3:50 pm.

Top Nifty Gainers and Losers

Among the Nifty pack, 32 of the 50 stocks ended with gains. Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp, and Mahindra and Mahindra emerged as the top gainers, while BPCL, Hindustan Unilever, and Asian Paints were the top losers.

Sectoral Performance

The Nifty Auto index led the sectoral gains with a rise of 1.58 percent, followed by Nifty IT with a gain of 0.94 percent. Nifty Bank also ended positively, up by 0.50 percent. Nifty Private Bank and PSU Bank indices registered decent gains. In contrast, Nifty Oil & Gas, FMCG, and Realty indices ended the day with losses.

Market Outlook

The upbeat performance of the Indian stock market reflects optimism about economic recovery and ongoing policy decisions by central banks, both domestically and globally. Investors are closely watching central bank meetings and data releases for further cues.