Sensex Marches On, Moves Past 60,000 In Style; Nifty Hits New Peak As Well

The benchmark 30-share BSE Sensex hit the 60,000 mark for the first ever time as the Indian market opened on a strong note Friday morning, extending recent gains on continued optimism about strong growth and slightly easing concerns over the pandemic thanks to greater momentum in vaccination drive.

The Sensex, which climbed to 60,333.00, is up 391.34 points or 0.65 percent at 60,276.70, while the broader Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange is up 105.85 points or 0.59 percent at 17,928.80 after hitting a new high at 17,947.65.

Information technology stocks, which had remained somewhat subdued in recent sessions, are the top gainers this morning. The BSE IT index is climbing 2.3 percent, and the Nifty IT is up 2.5 percent.

L&T Infotech, the biggest gainer in the Nifty IT, is up nearly 6 percent. Mphasis is rising 4.7 percent and HCL Technologies is gaining 3.2 percent, while MindTree, Infosys, Wipro, Oracle Financial Services and Tata Consultancy Services are up 2 to 3 percent. Tech Mahindra is gaining 1.3 percent.

Realty stocks are extending recent gains. Oberoi Realty is surging up 8.5 percent and Mahindra Lifespace is gaining 4.2 percent. Indiabulls Real Estate, Prestige and Godrej Properties are also up with strong gains.

In the telecom space, Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular and Tejas Network are up sharply.

Asian Paints, up 5.2 percent, is the top gainer in the Sensex. Mahindra & Mahindra, HDFC Bank and Kotak Bank are gaining 1 to 1.3 percent.

Tata Steel is declining more than 2 percent. ITC, State Bank of India, Hindustan Unilever and UltraTech Cement are also weak.

Asian markets are turning in a mixed performance today, continuing to closely follow the developments surrounding Chinese real estate major Evergrande Group.

U.S. stocks closed sharply higher overnight as easing concerns about Evergrande after the Chinese property developer reached a settlement with mainland bondholders. The People's Bank of China's infusion of massive capital into the country's banking system also eased concerns about a potential default by Evergrande.

Investors shrugged off a report showing an unexpected increase in first-time claims for U.S. employment benefits in the week ended September 18th. The Dow gained 1.5 percent, while the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 moved up 1 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively.

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