Sensex Scales Lifetime High of 55,958.98, Nifty Records 16,624.60 at Close

Equity benchmarks darted up to fresh lifetime highs on Tuesday, propelled by heavy buying in banking, finance and metal stocks amid supportive global cues. Rising for the second straight session, the 30-share BSE Sensex soared 403.19 points or 0.73 per cent to end at its lifetime peak of 55,958.98. On similar lines, the broader NSE Nifty surged 128.15 points or 0.78 per cent to its all-time closing high of 16,624.60.

Bajaj Finserv was the star performer in the Sensex pack, climbing 7.91 per cent after the company received in-principle approval from Sebi for sponsoring a mutual fund.

Tech Mahindra, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance, HDFC Bank, SBI and ICICI Bank were the other prominent winners, spurting up to 3.41 per cent. On the other hand, Nestle India, HDFC, Infosys, HCL Tech, Asian Paints, Kotak Bank were among the laggards, shedding up to 1.34 per cent.

"Domestic equities recovered sharply today mainly led by strong rebound in financials and metals. Further, positive cues from global equities also supported markets. Notably, short coverings ahead of F&O expiry also aided some high beta stocks to witness sharp recovery today. 

"Further, midcap and small-cap stocks witnessed sharp recovery today after seeing continued selling pressure in recent weeks. Sharp correction in number of quality midcap stocks had started offering healthy risk-reward propositions," said Binod Modi, Head Strategy at Reliance Securities.

Experts said market sentiment was also bolstered after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday unveiled an ambitious Rs 6 lakh crore National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) that included unlocking value by involving private companies across infrastructure sectors -- from passenger trains and railway stations to airports, roads and stadiums.

"Strong rebound in broader markets along with favourable global cues bolstered optimism in Dalal Street, led by metal, banking and realty stocks. Metal stocks led the rally as value buying was witnessed in the sector after deep sell-off during the past four trading sessions due to weak iron ore futures across the globe," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Sectorally, BSE metal, basic materials, oil and gas, industrials and capital goods indices rose as much as 2.76 per cent, while IT, teck and FMCG ended in the red. Broader BSE midcap and smallcap indices rallied up to 1.69 per cent.

Global markets extended their gains after the USFDA granted full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech's Covid-19 vaccine, boosting hopes of faster vaccination and economic recovery. Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul ended with strong gains.

Equities in Europe were trading on a mixed note in mid-session deals. Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude rose 1.14 per cent to 69.15 dollars per barrel. The rupee appreciated by 3 paise to close at 74.19 against the US dollar on Tuesday.

Foreign institutional investors remained net sellers in the capital market on Monday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,363.36 crore, according to exchange data.