New Delhi: The market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms reached an all-time high of Rs 292.78 lakh crore on Friday amid a firm trend in equities where the benchmark Sensex settled at a record closing high of 63,384.58.
Markets analysts attributed the rally in the markets to the fact that the Federal Reserve did not raise interest rates, while positive global cues and foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turning net buyers of local equities also supported the uptrend.
The 30-share BSE benchmark zoomed 466.95 points or 0.74 per cent to settle at a record closing high of 63,384.58. During the day, it rallied 602.73 points or 0.95 per cent to 63,520.36.
The Sensex is just 198.49 points away from its lifetime intra-day peak of 63,583.07 December 1, 2022.
Thanks to the rebound in equities, the market capitalisation (mcap) of BSE-listed firms reached a record high of Rs 2,92,78,245.41 crore.
The rally in equities also made investors richer by Rs 2 lakh crore Friday.
The previous record high of the market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms was Rs 2,91,25,007.45 crore, registered December 14, 2022.
“Bulls at Dalal Street were in a celebratory mood as investors were happy, with the fact that the Federal Reserve did not raise interest rates, while positive global cues also supported the uptick. FIIs turning net buyers of local shares and the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq Composite flirting near their fresh 14-month highs also contributed to the overall mood,” said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd.
Bajaj Finserv was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, climbing 2.21 per cent, followed by Titan, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC Bank, IndusInd Bank, ITC, HDFC, Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, HUL, Reliance Industries and Mahindra & Mahindra.
“Indian equity markets continued to rise along with a rally in the global markets. Sensex and Nifty gained over 1 per cent this week,” Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equities Research (Retail), Kotak Securities Ltd, said.
On a weekly basis, the BSE benchmark jumped 758.95 points or 1.21 per cent.
In the broader market, the BSE smallcap gauge climbed 0.76 per cent, and the midcap index jumped 0.71 per cent.
Among the indices, financial services climbed 1.21 per cent, bankex jumped 1.03 per cent, capital goods (1.02 per cent), industrials (0.91 per cent), FMCG (0.80 per cent), consumer durables (0.78 per cent) and consumer discretionary (0.74 per cent).
In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong ended in the green.
Equity markets in Europe were trading with gains. The US markets ended significantly higher Thursday.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 3,085.51 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.
“The domestic market rebounded with strong buying in banking, pharma, and consumer stocks, along with positive cues from global markets. The US market’s optimism was bolstered by better-than-expected retail sales, reflecting the robustness of the economy.
“Furthermore, jobless claims remain elevated, and a decline in import prices raised hopes for a prolonged pause in interest rate hikes by the Fed, contradicting their announcement of potential future rate hikes made the previous day,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
PTI