Sensex above 52,000 mark, banking and financial stocks gain

Equity benchmark indices traded at fresh lifetime highs during early hours on Monday due to firm global cues with banking and financial stocks witnessing handsome gains. At 10:15 am, the BSE S&P Sensex was up by 477 points or 0.92 per cent at 52,021 while the Nifty 50 ticked higher by 123 points or 0.81 per cent to 15,286.

Sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were mixed with Nifty private bank up by 1.6 per cent, PSU bank by 0.8 and financial service by 1.6 per cent. But Nifty metal was down by 0.5 per cent and pharma by 0.2 per cent. Among stocks, Axis Bank moved up by 2.2 per cent to Rs 767.40 per share. IndusInd Bank edged higher by 2.1 per cent, ICICI Bank by 1.7 per cent, HDFC Bank by 1.5 per cent and Kotak Mahindra Bank by 1.3 per cent.

State Bank of India was up by 1.4 per cent to Rs 398.70 per share while Bajaj Finance ticked up by 1.4 per cent and home loan lender HDFC by 2 per cent. Among the losers were SBI Life, Grasim, ONGC, GAIL, NTPC Coal India, Tata Steel and Dr Reddy's.

Meanwhile, Asian shares advanced to record highs as successful coronavirus vaccine rollouts globally raise hopes of a rapid economic recovery amid new fiscal aid from Washington. MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan jumped by 0.4 per cent.

Japan's Nikkei climbed by 1.3 per cent despite data showing the country's recovery from its worst postwar recession slowed in the fourth quarter.