Markets at fresh peak: Sensex rises 227 points to hit record closing of 44,180; Nifty settles at 12,938 – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Equity indices continued to surge on Wednesday with both the BSE and NSE indices scaling fresh closing highs, led by gains in auto, bank and realty stocks.
The benchmark BSE sensex hit an intra-day high of 44,215 before settling 227 points or 0.52 per cent up at record closing of 44,180. The 30-share BSE index closed above the 44,000-mark for the first time ever. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty finished 64 points or 0.50 per cent higher at fresh peak of 12,938.
M&M emerged as the top gainer in the sensex pack with its share rising as much as 10.82 per cent followed by Bajaj Finserv, L&T, IndusInd Bank, SBI and Bajaj Finance.
While Hindustan Unilever, Titan, TCS, ITC and Bharti Airtel were the top losers falling up to 1.86 per cent.
On the NSE platform, sub-indices Nifty Auto, PSU Bank, Realty, Bank and Private Bank gained as much as 3.57 per cent.
Optimism around vaccines becoming available and sustained inflows from foreign institutional investors should keep sentiment in Indian markets positive, Siddharth Khemka, head of research for retail at Motilal Oswal Securities told news agency Reuters.
“Profit-booking might pull down the market for some time, but we don’t expect a huge downtick from here,” Khemka said. “In the near-term, we expect markets to continue their upward journey.”
Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors remained net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 4,905.35 crore on Tuesday, according to provisional exchange data.
(With agency inputs)