Share market today: The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Monday hit intra-day record highs before closing flat in the second half after losing momentum due to profit booking in some key stocks. The BSE Sensex settled at 81,356, rising 23 points. It touched an all-time high of 81,908 during intra-day trade. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 settled at 24,836, up 1 point. The benchmark surged to a record high of 24,999.
Stock update
On the 30-share Sensex platform, L&T, Bajaj Finserv, M&M, UltraCemco, SBI, Reliance emerged gainers. On the down side, Titan, Airtel, ITC, TechM, Kotak Bank, HDFC Bank were among the losers.
In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap index jumped nearly 1 per cent while Smallcap index advanced 1.2 per cent.
Sectoral update
Sectorally, PSU Bank, Media, and Realty indices rallied up to 2.25 per cent, while FMCG, IT, and select financial services settled in the red.
In the previous session on Friday, the BSE benchmark soared 1,293 points to end at 81,333, while the NSE Nifty50 surged 429 points to close at an all-time high of 24,835.
Global update
In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong settled in the positive territory. European markets were trading on a mixed note. The US markets rallied on Friday.
"An ease in the US personal consumption expenditure to 2.5 per cent and the subsequent drop in the US 10-year yield have fuelled optimism that the Fed might cut rates in September, leading to a global rally. However, profit-booking was triggered in the domestic market given trading in the overbought territory and closed flat," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 2,546.38 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.31 per cent to $80.88 a barrel.
Rupee closes flat
The rupee moved in a narrow range before settling flat at 83.73 (provisional) against US dollar on Monday as a firm American currency in overseas markets offset the gains from weak crude oil prices. Forex traders said a recovery in the US dollar and dollar demand from importers restricted gains for the domestic unit.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 83.70 and touched a low of 83.74 against the dollar during the trading session. It finally settled at 83.73 (provisional) against the American currency, unchanged from its previous close. On Friday, the rupee recovered from its all-time low level and appreciated 5 paise to 83.73 against the US dollar.