Equity indices hit record highs; Sensex touches 37,000-mark
Mumbai, July 26: The S&P BSE Senseex and the NSE Nifty50 touched thier new record highs during the intra-day trade session on Thursday.
The barometer Sensex climbed over the 37,000-mark, while Nifty50 touched it's all time high of 11,178.85 points
According to analysts, better than expected quarterly results along with positive global cues led both the indices to their new highs.
However, both the indices receded from their peaks due to profit booking.
At 12.27 p.m., the wider Nifty50 traded at 11,166.70 points, higher by 34.70 points or 0.31 per cent from its previous close.
The barometer Sensex traded at 36,978.37 points (12.27 p.m.) -- higher by 120.14 points or 0.33 per cent -- from its previous close of 36,858.23 points.
It touched a new intra-day benchmark of 37,026.18 points and an intra-day low of 36,894.82.
"Positive global cues and a raft of encouraging Q1 results pushed Sensex and Nifty into all time highs on Thursday," said Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities.
The major gainers on the Sensex were State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Tata Motors, Power Grid and Bharti Airtel, while Asian Paints, Larsen and Toubro, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Wipro and Infosys were the major losers so far.
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Rupee hits all-time low for second time in a week
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee depreciated 31 paise to settle at 91.99 against the US dollar on Wednesday, touching the lowest closing level for the second time in less than a week, amid increased month-end demand for the greenback.
Forex traders said the rupee opened higher as the US dollar index softened and a long-awaited trade breakthrough with Europe offered quiet reassurance. However, increased month-end demand for the American currency as well as the ongoing geopolitical tensions dented investors' sentiments.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 91.60 and touched an early high of 91.50, but pared all the gains to touch an intra-day low of 91.99 against the greenback.
The domestic unit settled 31 paise down, revisiting its lowest-ever closing level of 91.99 against the greenback. The Indian currency previously ended at this level on January 23 when it also hit its all-time intraday low of 92 against the US dollar.
On Tuesday, the rupee rebounded from its all-time low levels and gained 22 paise to close at 91.68 against the US dollar.
Analysts said the rupee opened higher as the US dollar index softened and a long-awaited trade breakthrough with Europe bolstered investor sentiment.
India and the European Union on Tuesday announced the conclusion of negotiations for the free trade agreement (FTA), under which a number of domestic sectors such as apparel, chemicals and footwear will get duty-free entry into the 27-nation bloc, while the EU will get access to the Indian market at concessional duty for cars and wines, an official said.
The deal has been dubbed the "mother of all deals" as it will create a market of about 2 billion people.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.07 per cent lower at 96.14.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.43 per cent lower at USD 67.28 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex jumped 487.20 points to settle at 82,344.68, while Nifty surged 167.35 points to 25,342.75.
Foreign Institutional Investors turned net buyers and purchased equities worth Rs 480.26 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
