Benchmarks extended their gravity-defying run for the third straight session on Friday as healthy earnings by bluechips and GST rationalisation gave fresh impetus to the buying momentum.
The BSE Sensex spurted 251.29 points to end at its fresh lifetime high of 35,511.58, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 77.70 points to record 10,894.70. Intra-day, it breached the 10,900-mark for the first time.
Investor sentiment got a leg-up after the GST Council on Thursday cut the tax rate on 29 goods and 54 categories of services.
Encouraging third-quarter results by bluechips like HDFC Bank and ITC added to the cheer.
Opening higher, the 30-share Sensex surged to an all-time high of 35,542.17 on a string of encouraging earnings. It finally ended 251.29 points, or 0.71 per cent higher at 35,511.58 — bettering its previous record closing of 35,260.29 hit on Thursday.
The index has now rallied 740.53 points in three straight sessions. The 50-share NSE Nifty settled higher by 77.70 points, or 0.72 per cent, at 10,894.70. The index surpassed its previous lifetime closing high of 10,817 recorded in Thursday's session. Intra-day, it touched an all-time high of 10,906.85.
It was the seventh week of gains in a row for the markets. The Sensex recorded a significant rise of 919.19 points, or 2.65 per cent while the Nifty gained 213.45 points, or 1.99 per cent, in the week.
“Government's decision to cut GST rate for few more items and a good start to earnings season added energy in the market. Market is anticipating a sea change in the earnings with a growth of 15-20 per cent in PAT led by revamp in businesses and low base effect. Moreover, positive trend in global market and drop in crude prices influenced buying pattern,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have been supporting the ongoing record-run by infusing sizeable capital. They bought shares worth Rs 1,894.99 crore while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold equities worth Rs 657.46 crore on Thursday, as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.
On the sectoral front, bankex jumped 1.52 per cent, followed by realty (1.26 per cent), infrastructure (1.19 per cent), PSU (1.06 per cent), capital goods (0.92 per cent), metal (0.91 per cent) oil and gas (0.87 per cent), power (0.46 per cent), healthcare (0.43 per cent), FMCG (0.42 per cent), IT (0.36 per cent) and auto (0.15 per cent).