Indian equity benchmark indices, BSE Sensex and Nifty50, continued to soar to new lifetime highs on Thursday. The BSE Sensex crossed the 79,000 mark for the first time, peaking at 79,013.76. Similarly, Nifty50 breached the 23,900 level. As of 10:24 AM, the BSE Sensex was trading at 78,926.10, up by 252 points or 0.32%, while Nifty50 stood at 23,941.50, up by 73 points or 0.30%.
At this hour, the top gainers on the Sensex were UltraTech Cement, JSW Steel, Reliance Industries, Axis Bank, and ICICI Bank. Conversely, the top losers included ITC, HDFC Bank, TCS, IndusInd Bank, and Asian Paints.
The equity markets have maintained their upward trend with Nifty reaching new highs for the second consecutive day, edging closer to the 24,000 mark. Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Retail Research at Motilal Oswal, attributed the positive market movement to overall optimism surrounding the Union Budget, increasing foreign institutional investor (FII) inflows, and robust domestic economic data. "We expect the ongoing uptrend to continue further," Khemka stated.
However, Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities cautioned that the current upside momentum might face resistance around the 24,000-24,100 levels. He suggested that a period of consolidation or minor weakness could emerge from these highs, with immediate support at the 23,650 levels.
Meanwhile, in the US, major stock indexes closed with modest gains on Wednesday after a choppy trading session. Investors remained cautious ahead of a presidential debate and a closely watched inflation report by the Federal Reserve. The Dow gained 0.04%, the S&P rose by 0.16%, and the Nasdaq increased by 0.49%.
Oil prices dipped in early Asian trade on Thursday due to a surprise build in U.S. stockpiles, raising concerns about slow demand from the top oil consumer. However, worries about a potential expansion of the Gaza war disrupting Middle East supplies limited the declines. The yen remained near a 38-year low, struggling on the weaker side of 160 per dollar, keeping markets alert for any signs of intervention from Japanese authorities to support the currency.
Overall, the Indian equity markets continue to display strong performance, buoyed by positive domestic and international economic signals.
