Sensex rises 315 points to hit fresh closing high; Nifty settles at 12,874 – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Equity indices finished higher on Tuesday with both the BSE and NSE indices scaling fresh record highs as Covid-19 vaccine turns high.
After hitting an intra-day high of 44,161, the benchmark BSE sensex settled 315 points or 0.72 per cent higher at record closing of 43,953; while the broader NSE Nifty finished 94 points or 0.74 per cent higher at fresh peak of 12,874.
Top gainers in the sensex pack included Tata Steel, SBI, HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank and L&T with their shares rising as much as 6 per cent.
While NTPC, ONGC, HCL Tech, Infosys, Hindustan Unilever, ITC and Power Grid were the major losers falling up to 2.69 per cent.
On the NSE platform, sub-indices Nifty Metal, Bank, Financial Services and PSU Bank gained as much as 2.49 per cent.
Domestic markets surged on news that US drugmaker Moderna Inc’s coronavirus vaccine was 94.5% effective in preventing infection.
Moderna Inc became the second drugmaker after Pfizer Inc to announce promising trial data in the development of a Covid-19 vaccine, pushing global markets higher.
“There is comfort in the fact that the temperature requirements for (Moderna’s) vaccine are quite moderate, which would make transportation easier,” Anita Gandhi, director at Arihant Capital Markets told news agency Reuters.
Markets had eked out modest gains in a one-hour special “muhurat” trading session for Diwali on Saturday, and were closed on Monday on account of Balipratipada.
On the global front, US equities surged to record high after biotech group Moderna said its Covid-19 vaccine was highly effective.
(With agency inputs)