Indian equity indices Nifty and Sensex commenced trading on Thursday at a new record high, mirroring a surge in Asian counterparts. At around 9:20 am, the BSE Sensex was up by 86 points or 0.12 per cent at 74,172, while the Nifty was trading at 22,501, marking an increase of 27 points or 0.12 per cent.
JSW Steel, Bajaj Finance, Tata Steel, and SBI were among the top gainers in Sensex stocks, while M&M, Infosys, ICICI Bank, TCS, and Axis Bank were among the top losers.
On Wednesday, during the final hour of trading on Wednesday, Sensex and Nifty, experienced a notable rebound, primarily driven by a surge in banking and financial shares. The S&P BSE Sensex, which had remained in negative territory for most of the day, concluded the session 409 points higher at 74,086. This marks the first instance of the Sensex surpassing the 74,000 mark. Conversely, the NSE Nifty50 closed at 22,474, registering an increase of 118 points or 0.53 per cent. The BSE benchmark achieved a record high of 74,151, while the Nifty50 reached 22,497.
On the broader market, the BSE Midcap and BSE Smallcap indices closed in negative territory, declining by 0.65 per cent and 1.9 per cent, respectively. Sector-wise, the Nifty Bank and Private Bank indices saw gains of 0.8 per cent each, trailed by a 0.6 per cent increase in the Nifty Financial Services index. Both the Pharma and IT indices witnessed a rise of 0.7 per cent each. Conversely, the Nifty Media index experienced a decline of 2.5 per cent, followed by the Nifty Realty index with a 1.3 per cent drop and the Nifty Metal index with a 0.5 per cent decrease.
The Indian rupee demonstrated a gain of 7 paise against the US dollar on Wednesday, reaching 82.83 (provisional). This appreciation was attributed to the weakened US dollar against major currencies worldwide and a surge in domestic equities. However, the local currency faced pressure due to the rise in crude oil prices globally, limiting its upward movement, as noted by forex traders.
Throughout the day's trading session at the interbank foreign exchange market, the Indian rupee fluctuated between 82.82 and 82.91 against the US dollar, ultimately settling at 82.83 (provisional), reflecting a 7-paise increase from the previous close. On Tuesday, the rupee had remained unchanged at 82.90 against the US dollar.