Closing bell: Sensex rises 280 points to close at 72,708, Nifty above 22,100

India’s main index, Nifty 50, recovered from a volatile start on Monday, hitting a record high, led by financials and energy stocks, with a resurgence in ITC following a recent drop.

The benchmark has scaled new highs for the sixth time in 2024.

The NSE Nifty 50 index rose up to 0.50% to a record level of 22,150.75, as of 11:48 a.m. IST, while the S&P BSE Sensex increased 0.34% to 72,679.55, about 800 points shy of its all-time high.

The benchmarks had opened 0.3% higher before surrendering early gains, to drop 0.1% lower in the first hour of trading.

“Domestic equities have remained resilient in the face of fading hopes of an early U.S. rate cut, thanks to strong macroeconomic fundamentals and persistent domestic inflows,” said Siddhartha Khemka, head of retail research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

In-line quarterly results, sustained earnings stability in energy companies and interest in public sector banks due to valuation comfort bolstered sentiment, Khemka added.

Eleven of the 13 major sectors logged gains.

Highest-weighted financials climbed 0.6%, while public sector banks advanced 0.5%, extending gains.

Energy stocks rose 0.4%. Tata Power Company rose 2% on securing a letter of intent for an 8.38 billion rupee ($101 million) power project acquisition.

Among individual stocks, ITC, which dropped 14.2% over the last four weeks, rebounded 1.5%, leading gains in the consumer index, which rose 0.71%.

Information technology stocks dropped 0.3% after data showed U.S. producer prices increased more than expected in January, reinforcing the view that potential Fed rate cuts are not imminent. IT companies earn bulk of their revenue from the U.S.

The more domestically-focussed small and mid-caps added about 0.6% each, mirroring the benchmarks.