Mumbai: Domestic stock markets clocked a new all-time high on Thursday backed by buying in banking and IT sectors. The S&P BSE Sensex index jumped as much as 340.35 points to touch 40,392.22 at the day’s strongest level, surpassing its earlier record high of 40,312.07 registered in June this year. The broader NSE Nifty benchmark climbed to as high as 11,945.00, up 100.9 points from its previous close, but was 158.05 points shy of its all-time high of 12,103.05 recorded on June 3.
At 2:00 pm, the Sensex traded 269.36 points – or 0.67 per cent – higher at 40,321.23 while the Nifty was up 88.60 points – or 0.75 per cent – at 11,932.70.
Yes Bank shares were up 28.87 per cent at the time after soaring nearly 35 per cent in their biggest single-day jump in four weeks, following the private sector lender’s announcement that it had received a binding offer of $1.2 billion from a global investor. Yes Bank shares were the top percentage gainer on both benchmark indices.
Other top percentage gainers on the 50-scrip index were Zee Entertainment, SBI, Infosys, Grasim and GAIL, trading between 3.14 per cent and 8.76 per cent higher.
Infosys, SBI and Yes Bank were the top contributors to the gain in Sensex, together accounting for a gain of 234.47 points on the index.
The Nifty Bank index – comprising shares of 12 major lenders in the country – rose as much as 1.40 per cent. Besides Yes Bank, public sector lenders State Bank of India (SBI) and Punjab National Bank (PNB) – rising 8.97 per cent and 4.47 per cent respectively – were among the prominent gainers in the sector.
Analysts say positive earnings from large cap corporates and hopes of a pickup in the economy supported investors’ sentiment. They however expected some volatility ahead of the expiration of monthly derivatives (futures & options) contracts due by the end of the session.
“Sentiments have turned recently, most results are decent and there have not been any disappointments so far,” news agency Reuters quoted Siddhartha Khemka, head of retail research at Motilal Oswal Securities, as saying.
Indian Oil Corporation shares rose around 1 per cent ahead of the earnings announcement by the country’s largest fuel retailer.
“Growth is improving, festive demand has been better than expected, and the Fed rate cut is generally positive for emerging markets… the current momentum could continue on the back of positive factors,” Mr Khemka added.
The markets were on course to close higher for a fifth day running, and were set to finish the month with a gain of more than 3 per cent each.
