Markets hit record peaks: Sensex breaches 73,000 level for first time; Nifty goes past 22k mark

Mumbai benchmark indices hit record highs, with Sensex crossing 73,000 and Nifty surpassing 22,000, driven by IT stocks.

Benchmark equity indices hit record peaks in early trade on January 15, with the Sensex breaching the 73,000 milestone for the first time and the Nifty surging past the historic 22,000-mark, driven by a sharp rally in IT stocks.

The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 720.33 points to reach an all-time peak of 73,288.78 in early trade. The Nifty also breached the 22,000 milestone, climbing 187.4 points to reach a lifetime high of 22,081.95.

Among the Sensex firms, Wipro zoomed nearly 11% even as the IT company on January 12 posted an 11.74% decline in consolidated net profit to ₹2,694.2 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2023.

The other prominent gainers were Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, State Bank of India and HDFC Bank.

HCL Technologies on January 12 reported a 6.2% increase in consolidated net profit at ₹4,350 crore, highest ever every quarter, in the three months ended December 2023 on the back of growth in both services and software businesses.

Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finance, NTPC and Asian Paints were among the laggards.

"The rally in the market, primarily driven by momentum, is now getting support from fundamentals. The sharp bounce in large cap IT stocks on the back of slightly positive management commentary indicates that an underperforming segment can surprise on the upside on news of a turnaround in the sector.