Market / Sensex hits record closing high of 53,159, Nifty ends above 15,900 for 1st time

Mumbai: Equity indices surged to record highs on Thursday with the benchmark BSE sensex rising over 250 points led by gains in realty and IT stocks.

The 30-share BSE index surged 255 points or 0.48 per cent to close at fresh peak of 53,159; while the broader NSE Nifty settled 70 points or 0.44 per cent up at record of 15,924.

HCL Tech, L&T, Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, ITC, Ultracemco and Tata Steel were the top gainers in sensex pack rising as much as 5.1 per cent.

On the other hand, Bharti Airtel, M&M, Titan, Asian Paints, NTPC and Sun Pharma falling up to 0.92 per cent.

On the NSE platform, sub-indices Nifty Realty, IT, Bank and Private Bank gained as much as 4.2 per cent.

According to experts, markets are riding on gains in technology stocks after IT major Infosys upgraded its annual revenue outlook.

Results from Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services, with solid outlooks, augur well for the industry and can invite further investments, V K Vijayakumar, chief Investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services told news agency Reuters.

"This leg of the market remains strong. However, Nifty is likely to face resistance around 15,900 since foreign institutional investors are consistent sellers at higher levels," he added.

On realty stocks front, shares of L&T Technology Services (LTTS) zoomed more than 19 per cent after the company reported an 84 per cent jump in its June quarter net.

Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,303.95 crore on Wednesday, as per provisional exchange data.

Besides, global support to the markets also came from US Fed chief Jerome Powell's remark that rates will remain near zero until "inflation goes persistently and materially higher".