Investors have kept their eyes on US-China trade talks and are optimistic about a positive outcome.
Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com
Market benchmarks Sensex and Nifty extended their rise for the third straight session on Tuesday, though gains were marginal, and closed at fresh closing highs on buying in pharma and IT stocks amid optimism over US-China trade talks.
The BSE Sensex edged higher by 7 points and managed to end at a new peak of 38,285.75, surpassing its previous record closing of 38,278.75 hit on Monday.
The 30-share index also went on to hit its life-time high (intra-day) at 38,402.96 in day's trade.
Its previous intra-day high was 38,340.69, reached on Monday. During the day, it touched a low of 38,213.87.
The broader NSE Nifty also logged its fresh closing high of 11,570.90, up 19.15 points, or 0.17 per cent.
The 50-issue index surpassed its previous record closing of 11,551.75, marked yesterday.
The Nifty also met its intra-day record high at 11,581.75, breaking its previous day's record of 11,565.30. The index slipped to a low of 11,539.60 during the day's trade.
Unabated buying by domestic institutional investors (DIIs) and positive sentiment in world markets helped domestic markets scale fresh highs on Tuesday, brokers said.
Investors have kept their eyes on US-China trade talks and are optimistic about a positive outcome.
The tariff war between them has been keeping global markets uncertain for a while now.
But, the trade talks between the two major economies, which are scheduled to take place through Tuesday and Wednesday this week, have led to an improvement in market sentiments, they added.
Among the Sensex constituents, Coal India was the top gainer by climbing 2.59 per cent to close at Rs 291.55 after reports indicated that the government is planning to sell some minority stake in the company.
Other gainers included Axis Bank 1.92 per cent, NTPC 1.70 per cent, Sun Pharma 1.69 per cent, Wipro 1.48 per cent, RIL 0.94 per cent, ONGC 0.71 per cent, Maruti Suzuki 0.32 per cent, TCS 0.16 per cent, ICICI Bank 0.16 per cent and Hero Motocorp 0.14 per cent, helping the index scale record high levels.
Lupin rose 2.23 per cent after company today said it has received final approval from the USFDA to market Hydrocortisone Butyrate lotion, used for treatment of mild atopic dermatitis in patients 3 months of age and older.
Profit-booking in index major Tata Steel pulled it 2.86 per cent, while HUL fell 1.30 per cent, Vedanta 1.17 per cent, M&M 1.12 per cent, Bharti Airtel 0.72 per cent, Yes Bank 0.72 per cent, IndusInd Bank 0.71 per cent, Kotak Bank 0.66 per cent, Asian Paint 0.48 per cent, HDFC 0.38 per cent, Bajaj Auto 0.24 per cent and SBI 0.21 per cent.
The broader markets also displayed a firm trend with mid-cap index rising by 0.52 per cent and small-cap index by 0.34 per cent.
Among the BSE sectoral indices, power index rose the most by surging 1.55 per cent, followed by healthcare 1.12 per cent, energy 0.72 per cent, IT 0.45 per cent, teck 0.38 per cent, capital goods 0.26 per cent, infrastructure 0.19 per cent, PSU 0.12 per cent and oil & gas 0.11 per cent.
While realty fell 1.45 per cent, metal 0.41 per cent, consumer durables 0.35 per cent, FMCG 0.06 per cent, auto 0.05 per cent and bankex 0.01 per cent.
Globally, Asian and European shares rose on optimism over trade talks between the United States and China.
Immediate focus was on the lower-level trade talks, due to start this week, between the United States and China.
Meanwhile, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net of Rs 593.22 crore, while foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net of Rs 483.04 crore on Monday, provisional data showed.
However, this week will also see the imposition of 25 per cent tariffs on $16 billion worth of Chinese imports, an action by the Trump administration that China has said it would retaliate against.
Among key Asian indices, Shanghai Composite Index moved up 1.31 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.56 per cent and Japan's Nikkei was up 0.09 per cent.
Among European markets, Frankfurt's DAX rose 0.69 per cent and Paris CAC 40 moved up 0.74 per cent in their early session.
London's FTSE, however, was down 0.41 per cent.
US stocks closed higher for a third session on Monday as a pair of billion-dollar deals reaffirmed confidence that the US economy continues its steady expansion.
BSE and NSE will be closed on Wednesday on account of 'Bakri Id' holiday.
