Tech Shares Help Nifty Clock Fresh Record; Sensex Closes Above 80,000: Market Wrap

The benchmark equity indices extended their record rally for the second consecutive session but ended little changed on Thursday as gains in information technology shares were offset by losses in HDFC Bank Ltd.

The NSE Nifty 50 ended 15.65 points or 0.06% up at 24,302.15, while the S&P BSE Sensex was 62.87 points or 0.08% up at 80,049.67, closing above the 80,000 mark for the first time.

During the day, the Nifty rose as much as 0.47% to an intraday record high of 24,401 and the Sensex gained 0.51% to an all-time high of 80,392.64.

"From the past couple of days, it seems that the index (Nifty) is finding it difficult to hold higher levels and bearish divergence in RSI indicates weakening of momentum," Aditya Gaggar, director of Progressive Shares Brokers, said. "The immediate support is placed at 24,150, while on the higher side, 24,400 will be considered as resistance."

Shares of ICICI Bank Ltd., Infosys Ltd., Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., Tata Motors Ltd. and HCL Technologies Ltd. contributed the most to the gains in the Nifty.

HDFC Bank Ltd., Larsen & Toubro Ltd., Bajaj Finance Ltd., Adani Enterprises Ltd. and UltraTech Cement Ltd. weighed on the index.

Most sectoral indices on the NSE closed higher, with the Nifty Pharma and IT leading.

The broader markets outperformed as the BSE MidCap and the SmallCap ended 0.60% and 0.62% higher respectively.

On the BSE, 16 sectors advanced and four declined, with Healthcare rising the most and Consumer Durables declining the most.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of the buyers as 2,186 stocks rose, 1,741 declined and 94 remained unchanged on the BSE.