Early Diwali On Dalal Street! Sensex Touches New High Of 42,500 Points, Nifty At A Fresh Peak Of 12,461

The benchmark BSE Sensex zoomed 704 points on Monday to close at a record high of Rs 42579, before touching the intra-day high of 42,645. NSE Nifty meanwhile jumped 197 points or gained 1.6% to close at a new peak of 12,461.

Representational Picture (AFP)

Indian stock markets closed at record highs as equity indices continue to surge for the sixth straight session on Monday, with both the BSE and NSE indices scaling fresh record highs, led by gains in banking and financial stocks. The benchmark BSE Sensex zoomed 704 points on Monday to close at a record high of Rs 42579, before touching the intra-day high of 42,645, while the NSE Nifty jumped 197 points or gained 1.6% to close at a new peak of 12,461. Democrat Joe Biden's win in the US election led to a weaker dollar, fuelling hopes for more fund inflows into emerging markets. Banks, IT, and Reliance Industries (RIL) lead to the market rally, with top gainers in the 30-share index included IndusInd Bank (4.83%), Bharti Airtel (5.09%), ICICI Bank, Axis Bank (4.79%), Tata Steel, and Tech Mahindra. 27 of 30 Sensex stocks end the day in the green with Maruti (0.63%), ITC (0.55%), Bajaj Finserv (0.07%) were the losers. Ajit Mishra, VP – Research at Religare Broking, believes that markets started the week on a robust note and made a new record high, taking cues from the global indices. "The reaction was mainly in response to the news of Joe Biden winning the US presidential elections. Besides, noticeable buying in index majors, especially from the banking pack, further boosted the sentiment. The broader markets, too, remained buoyant and ended in the range of 0.6-1%. All the sectoral indices witnessed healthy buying interest wherein banks, telecom, and metals were the top gainers," said Mr. Mishra. Markets have seen a decent run-up and reached to record highs as well, driven by better-than-expected earnings so far, supportive global cues, and improving macro data. Further, the on-going corporate profits, domestic economic data (IIP and CPI), and Bihar election outcome will focus. "Markets would continue to mirror global indices. We suggest maintaining" "buy on dips" approach and keeping extra caution in the selection of stock," Mr. Mishra added. Information technology (IT) stocks gained as many market participants anticipated that the Biden regime would spell good news for IT Indian firms. According to Dr. Joseph Thomas, Head of Research - Emkay Wealth Management, the market continued its upward trajectory across indexes and segments based on positive global developments emanating from the fact that more orderly conditions and aggressive pro-growth strategies may prevail with a change of regime in the US. "The prospects of higher fiscal and monetary expansion is giving the markets greater comfort on liquidity and interest rates. This is the best thing to happen for the markets which have been fuelled by liquidity since the pandemic and the lockdown," he said. Echoing similar feelings, Mr. Nish Bhatt, Founder & CEO, Millwood Kane International - an investment consulting firm on the market rally said that the clarity on the US Election outcome had spread cheer for the global equity market. "Indian market scaled fresh life highs in early trade. A stronger bilateral relationship with the US under the new administration will help Indian businesses. President-elect JoBiden's' plans to reverse most of Trump's tough decisions on visa and immigration plans to increase the H-1B visa limit and remove any country quota for green cards is a big positive for Indian IT companies. Biden at White House means less protectionism, a sign of ending tariff war," he said. "The market is rallying on hopes of fewer regulations and a bigger stimulus package under Joe Biden. The US economy needs a new stimulus package for a revival. India seems to be in a sweet spot and may gain as the US under Joe Biden is unlikely to ease pressure on Chin"," Mr. Bhatt added. IIFL Securities recommends ten stocks as "Diwali Dhama" in 2020. The top 10 stocks as per IILF are listed below.

S.NO	Name	CMP (Rs)	Target Price (Rs)	% Gain
Large Caps
1.	Reliance Industries	1,850	2,054	11
2.	Infosys	1,063	1,400	32
3.	ICICI Bank	444	530	19
4.	HCL Technologies	814	1,000	23
5.	Dr Reddy‘s Laboratories	4,877	5,800	19
Mid & Small Caps
6.	Tube Investments of India	668	751	13
7.	Apollo Tyres	143	175	22
8.	Persistent Systems	1,115	1,470	32
9.	JB Chemicals & Pharma	983	1,125	14
10.	Security & Intelligence Services	383	560	46