Sensex rises 316 points to hit record closing of 43,594; Nifty settles near 12,750

NEW DELHI: Equity indices continued their winning streak for the eighth straight session on Wednesday with both BSE and NSE scaling fresh highs led by gains in metal and pharma stocks.
After scaling a fresh intra-day peak of 43,708, the 30-share BSE index finished 316 points or 0.73 per cent higher at record closing of 43,594; while the broader NSE Nifty settled 118 points or 0.93 per cent higher at fresh high of 12,749.
Top gainers in the sensex pack included Tata Steel, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, ITC, Kotak Bank and Sun Pharma with their shares rising as much as 7.39 per cent.
While IndusInd Bank, Reliance, Titan, Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever and HDFC Bank were the only losers falling up to 5.62 per cent.
On the NSE platform, sub-indices Nifty Metal, Pharma, Auto and Financial Services gained as much as 3.59 per cent.
Domestic markets remained upbeat and extended gain for the eighth consecutive day as positive sentiments among investors following clarity of coronavirus vaccine by BioNTech-Pfizer and strong Q2 corporate earnings persist, Arjun Yash Mahajan Head Institutional Business at Reliance Securities told news agency PTI.
"While market witnessed some amount of volatility today led by profit booking in some of heavyweights, a sharp rebound in pharma, metals, IT and auto stocks supported market rally," he added.
Additionally, NDA's win in Bihar assembly elections bode well for domestic equities, he noted.
Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai and Hong Kong ended in the red, while Seoul and Tokyo closed with gains.
Stock exchanges in Europe were trading on a positive note in early deals.
A report by SIAM showed India's passenger vehicle sales grew more than 14% in October from a year ago.
On the currency front, rupee slumped 18 paise to close at 74.36 against the US dollar.
Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors remained net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 5,627.32 crore on Tuesday, according to provisional exchange data.
(With agency inputs)