The Nifty 50 index hit a lifetime high of 9,122.8 in early morning trades, going past 9,000 for the first time in over two years as the Bharatiya Janata Party’s win in the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh gives the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government a chance to push through economic reforms.
The Sensex touched a high of 29,561.93 points and a low of 29,381.42 points during the intra-day trade so far.
The index was last above 9,000 on March 4, 2015 when it hit 9,119.2 in intra-day trading. The broader Nifty 500 index has since has gained 5.9 percent and the Nifty Bank index has advanced 5.5 percent.
Yes Bank Ltd. gained the most among Nifty 50 stocks during the period, up nearly 73 percent, followed by oil marketing company Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL) and carmaker Maruti Suzuki Ltd., each of which rose nearly 62 percent, and Zee Entertainment Ltd, up 50 percent. The recently re-rated Reliance Industries Ltd. completes the top five gainers, rising 44 percent during the period.
The stocks that weighed down the Nifty 50 index include Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. (BHEL), Tech Mahindra Ltd., Idea Cellular Ltd. and Sun Pharmaceuticals Ltd., each of which lost between 32 and 34 percent.
Since March 2015, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have bought stocks worth Rs 32,028 crore, less than one-third of Rs 1,09,349 crore pumped into equities by domestic institutional investors (DIIs).
(With inputs from IANS, BloombergQuint)