Sensex rises 403 points to hit record closing high; Nifty ends above 16,600 – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Equity indices soared to record highs on Tuesday with the benchmark BSE sensex rising over 400 points led by gains in metal, banking and financial stocks.
The 30-share BSE index jumped 403 points or 0.73 per cent to close at record high of 55,959; while the broader NSE Nifty settled 128 points or 0.78 per cent higher at a fresh peak of 16,625.
Top gainers in the sensex pack included Bajaj Finserv, Tata Steel, tech Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, HDFC Bank and SBI with their shares rising as much as 7.92 per cent.
Whereas, Nestle India, Infosys, HDFC, HCL Tech and Asian Paints were the major losers falling up to 1.34 per cent.
On the NSE platform, sub-indices Nifty Metal, Bank, PSU Bank and Financial Services gained as much as 2.9 per cent.
The Nifty Metal index rebounded after four sessions of losses led by a 2.8 per cent to 3.2 per cent gain among Vedanta, Hindalco, and Steel Authority of India.
Energy company GAIL rose as much as 5.1 per cent after the government, announced the National Monetisation Programme aimed at boosting infrastructure spending and spurring economic growth, and said it plans to monetise $81 billion worth of state assets over the next four years. This includes already built gas pipelines and roads, among others.
“If implemented effectively, the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) will help target two birds with one stone — fund crucial infrastructure projects yet keep fiscal consolidation plans on track without compromising on capex allocations,” Radhika Rao, senior vice president at DBS Bank, said in a note to news agency Rueters.
Asian stocks tracked a bounce on Wall Street after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted full approval to the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.
Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,363.36 crore on Monday, as per provisional exchange data.
(With inputs from agencies)