Samvat 2069 ends on cheerful note at all-time closing high of 21,196.81

Mumbai – The Samvat 2069 ended on a cheerful note with benchmark BSE Sensex on Friday settling at a new all-time closing high of 21,196.81 on buying in realty, banks, metal and auto shares, amid renewed optimism on the economic front.

After gaining 594.24 points in the past three sessions, the 30-share bluechip index on Friday hit a new intra-day high of 21,293.88 before finally closing at 21,196.81 – up 32.29 points, or 0.15 per cent. The previous intra-day peak of 21,206.77 was set on January 10, 2008.

Out of the 20 winners in the Sensex, major contributors included State Bank of India (up 4.67 per cent), M&M (4.12 p.c.), Jindal Steel (3.46 p.c.), Sesa Sterlite (2.30 p.c.), Tata Motors (1.12 p.c.) and ICICI Bank (1.10 p.c.).

“Indian markets had a fire-cracker of a week ahead of the festive season. Clearly, the banks called the shots and in that space PSU banks staged a phenomenal turnaround,” said Milan Bavishi, Head Research, Inventure Growth and Securities.

For the week, Sensex rose 513.3 points or 2.5 per cent.

Increased capital inflows driven by attractive corporate earnings boosted buying while some investors chose to book profits logged in the recent gains, brokers said.

Auto shares saw heavy buying on robust sales growth in October, experts said.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram said the momentum in the export growth is expected to continue in the remaining part of current fiscal, while stating that a bumper crop harvest is seen arriving on good monsoon.

Chidambaram added that the market seemed to be happy but cautioned investors against excessive exuberance.

The Sensex recorded a handsome gain of 2,526.47 points from the closing of last Samvat 2068 (November 12, 2012).

The National Stock Exchange index Nifty rose above 6,300 level after three years by gaining 8.05 points, or 0.13 per cent to 6,307.20. The Nifty registered an all-time high of 6,357.10 on January 8, 2008, and a record close of 6,312.45 on November 5, 2010.

On Thursday, eight infrastructure industries posted a growth rate of 8 per cent for September on account of good performance by crude oil, steel and electricity sectors.