Mkt heavyweights push indices to newer peaks

Reports of emergency vaccine rollout in India and hopes of a stimulus package in the US and Japan has also helped in keeping momentum live

Mumbai: Equity indices finished at fresh record highs on Tuesday, propelled by market heavyweight Reliance Industries and IT stocks, as investors remained in buying mode amid unabated foreign fund inflows.

A strong recovery in the rupee added to the momentum, traders said. Rising for the fourth straight session, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 181.54 points or 0.40 per cent to finish at its fresh lifetime high of 45,608.51. The broader NSE Nifty rose for the sixth consecutive day, up 37.20 points or 0.28 per cent to 13,392.95 - its new closing record. UltraTech Cement was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising 3.15 per cent, followed by TCS, Reliance Industries, HCL Tech, Infosys, SBI and Kotak Bank.

RIL jumped 1.82 per cent after its chairman Mukesh Ambani said the company will roll out 5G telecom services in the second half of 2021. On the other hand, Sun Pharma, IndusInd Bank, NTPC, Tech Mahindra, ONGC and Asian Paints were among the laggards, shedding up to 2.36 per cent. "Since November, PSU banks have been outperforming the market and this rally continued and took Indian benchmark indices to new highs in today's volatile session. Reports of emergency vaccine rollout in India and hopes of a stimulus package in the US and Japan has also helped in keeping momentum live.

"European stocks are experiencing negative waves due to fading hopes of Brexit trade talks and an increasing number of Covid cases. Although the markets are at an all-time high, the expected updates on vaccine rollouts and stimulus packages have the potential to take markets further," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. BSE energy, IT, teck, realty, finance and bankex indices rose up to 1.14 per cent, while telecom, power, utilities, healthcare, metal and industrials indices closed with losses. Broader BSE midcap and smallcap indices slipped up to 0.29 per cent.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo ended in the red. Stock exchanges in Europe were also trading on a negative note in early deals. Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude futures slipped 0.35 per cent to $48.62 per barrel. The rupee surged by 30 paise to settle at 73.60 against the US dollar on Tuesday, buoyed by foreign fund inflows. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) remained net buyers in the capital markets, purchasing shares worth Rs 3,792.06 crore on Monday, according to provisional exchange data. (PTI)