Indian shares hit record highs on Monday amid optimism that falling coronavirus infection rates in different parts of the world and the continued rollout of vaccines will provide a major boost to economic recovery.
Stimulus news remained in focus as well after U.S. lawmakers approved a budget outline that will allow them to muscle President Biden’s $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief package through in the coming weeks without Republican support.
High capex and bold reforms announced in the Union Budget, the Covid-19 vaccination drive in India and upbeat corporate earnings results also helped equity indexes end higher for the sixth straight day running.
The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex hit as high as 51,523.38 before finishing the session up 617.14 points, or 1.22 percent, at 51,348.77 amid gains in auto and metal stocks.
The broader NSE Nifty index hit an intraday high of 15,159.90 before settling at 15,115.80, up 191.55 points, or 1.28 percent, from its previous close.
Mahindra & Mahindra surged 7.4 percent after its quarterly results topped expectations. JSW Steel, Shree Cement, Hindalco and Tata Motors rallied 3-6 percent.
Adani Enterprises jumped 5.7 percent after its arm Adani Airports bought 23.5 percent stake in Mumbai international airport for Rs 1,685 crore.
On the flip side, Divis Laboratories, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Hindustan Unilever and Britannia lost 1-2 percent.
Punjab National Bank gave up 5.1 percent on fund raising reports and on news that the state-run lender has received debt restructuring requests worth Rs 12,000 crore.
Sensex Soars 617 Points; Nifty Ends At 15,115
2021-02-08 11:22:16
