Markets set another life-time highs

Festive Demand Boost

♦ Positive global cues further pushed indices up

♦ BSE Sensex up for 11 sessions

♦ NSE Nifty went up by 89.25 pts to all-time closing high of 20,192.35

Mumbai: Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty darted up to fresh lifetime highs on Friday, propelled by a rally in global markets and renewed foreign capital inflows. Besides, buying in telecom, auto and tech stocks also helped markets to settle with gains, traders said. Rallying for the 11thday running, the 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 319.63 points or 0.47 per cent to settle at a record closing of 67,838.63. During the day, it rallied 408.23 points or 0.60 per cent to hit its fresh all-time intra-day high of 67,927.23. The Nifty went up by 89.25 points or 0.44 per cent to end at its all-time closing high of 20,192.35. During the day, it advanced 119.35 points or 0.59 per cent to hit its lifetime intra-day peak of 20,222.45.

“Nifty scaled fresh life highs on Friday, rising for the third consecutive session to end at a record close. Sensex rose for the 11thday, the longest streak of gains since October 2007,” Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities, said. On the weekly front, the BSE benchmark jumped 1,239.72 points or 1.86 per cent, and the Nifty climbed 372.4 points or 1.87 per cent.

“Domestic equities continued their winning streak following their global peers boosted by better-than-expected Chinese and US economic data as well as optimism that the European Central Bank may be close to peak interest rates,”adds Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.

Bharti Airtel was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, rising 2.37 per cent, followed by Mahindra & Mahindra, HCL Tech, Tata Motors, Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services, Axis Bank and Nestle.