Stock market today: BSE Sensex rallies over 700 points, closes above 78,000 for the first time; Nifty50 ends above 23,700

Stock market today: BSE Sensex and Nifty50, the Indian equity benchmark indices, hit new lifetime highs in trade on Tuesday. While, BSE Sensex surged over 700 points to cross the 78,000 level for the first time, Nifty50 also crossed the 23,700 level. BSE ended the day at a lifetime closing high of 78,053.52, up 712 points or 0.92%. Nifty50 closed the day at 23,721.30, up 183 points or 0.78%.
Indian stock markets soared to unprecedented heights, driven by robust performance in the banking sector.HDFC Bank emerged as the primary contributor to the rally, with significant support from ICICI Bank and Axis Bank.
The Nifty Bank index also achieved a lifetime high of 52,669.30, gaining 2% or 965 points during intraday trading.
The top Sensex gainers were Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Tech Mahindra, L&T, SBI, Bajaj Finserv, Infosys, and RIL. The top Sensex losers were Power Grid, Asian Paints, Tata Steel, JSW Steel, Nestle India, Maruti Suzuki and NTPC.
Analysts predict that the upcoming days may experience volatility due to the monthly F&O expiry week. "Markets this week will take cues from global macro data points and the progress of the monsoon back home. We expect Nifty to consolidate at the current juncture with a bout of volatility amid monthly derivatives expiry," said Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal.
V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, commented, "The sharp bounce back in Nifty by 7.5% from the June 4 lows indicates that the undercurrent of this market is bullish. High valuations may prompt selling by FIIs and profit booking by DIIs but the exuberant retail investors are likely to buy every dip since the 'buy- on-dip strategy' has worked very well in this bull market."
Vijayakumar also highlighted the positive outlook for the current account, which is expected to turn surplus in Q4FY24. This development is seen as favorable from a market perspective, as it could alleviate pressure on the rupee and facilitate foreign institutional investor (FII) inflows once clarity emerges regarding the Federal Reserve's rate cuts.
He further noted that the market is likely to continue favouring fairly valued large-cap stocks, particularly in the banking sector, while public sector banks appear attractive from a valuation standpoint.