The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Wednesday closed higher for the fourth straight session amid buying in some in some key index majors. The S&P BSE Sensex hit a fresh lifetime high of 72,098. It ended at 72,038, up 702 points. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 hit a new record high of 21,676 during intra-day trading. But it settled at 21,655, up 213 points.
On the 30-share Sensex platform, UltraCemco, JSW Steel, Tata Motors, Airtel, SBI, L&T emerged prime gainers. On the down side, only TechM and NTPC were the two laggards.
About 1,801 shares advanced, 1,848 declined, while 124 shares remain unchanged.
In the broader markets, BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices closed with nominal gains. The BSE MidCap index added 0.41 per cent, while the BSE SmallCap index rose 0.20 per cent.
Sectorally, except for oil & gas and power, all other sectoral indices closed in the green. Nifty PSU Bank index gained 2 per cent, the Nifty Auto index 1.38 per cent, the Nifty Metal index 1.39 per cent, and the Nifty bank index 1.13 per cent.
In the previous session on Tuesday, the S&P BSE Sensex index closed at 71,337, up 230 points, while the NSE Nifty50 settled at 21,441, up 92 points.
"After a brief midweek panic last week, bulls are back with a bang, albeit with some caution. India VIX has touched a new high in a multi-month time frame, indicating the possibility of some volatility as we approach the monthly expiry. FII's have been buyers in the last couple of sessions in Index options while they continue to stay long in the index futures segment. Banks have been a bit late to this party but now seem ready to break out from the current range. PSU Banks are the strongest while private banks are expected to play catch up," Rahul Sharma Director, Head- Technical & Derivative Research, JM Financial Services, said.
In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong settled with gains. European markets were mostly trading in positive territory. The US markets ended in the green on Tuesday.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.21 per cent to $80.90 a barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 95.20 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data.
Meanwhile, the rupee declined 16 paise to settle at 83.35 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday due to sustained outflow of foreign funds and increased demand for American currency from importers and banks. According to forex traders, a robust buying trend in the domestic equity market failed to boost sentiment as investors remained concerned over volatile crude oil prices fearing disruption in global trade through the Red Sea route.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic currency opened at 83.21 and traded between the peak of 83.20 and the lowest level of 83.35 against dollar during intra-day deals. The local unit finally settled at 83.35 (provisional) against the greenback, registering a fall of 16 paise from its previous close. On Tuesday, the domestic currency settled at 83.19 against the dollar.