Gains in IT stocks drive Sensex 205 pts higher to record close; Nifty near 19,750

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Sensex zoomed past the 67,000 mark for the first time. Nifty, which ended at 19,749, touched a fresh high at 19,819. By ending 3.7% higher, Infosys was the top gainer in the Nifty50 pack, followed by Asian Paints, HCL Tech and Reliance Industries.

On the other hand, LTIMindtree, HDFC Life, and SBI limited the upside with losses of around 1-3% each. Most major sectoral indices, including Nifty Bank, ended in the red, with the exception of Nifty IT which ended 1% higher. While the market may be in an overbought zone, analysts said the undertone remains bullish due to India's strong economic performance and hopes that the US rate hike cycle could be nearing the end on the back of moderating inflation.

«A positive trend in the US markets yesterday also contributed to the domestic benchmark indices optimism. The global market construct continues to be favourable for the bulls. Healthy consolidation can be the near-term trend,» said Vikram Kasat of Prabhudas Lilladher.

For Nifty, 19700 could be the key support level for day traders, below which a quick intraday correction till 19650-19600 is seen. On the flip side, as long as the index is trading above 19700, the uptrend wave is likely to continue and could rally till 19825-19875, said Shrikant Chouhan of Kotak Securities. Volumes on the NSE were above recent averages.

Broad market indices ended marginally in the negative even as the advance-decline ratio fell to 0.69:1. Asian markets were mixed as investors were struggling to find something positive after poor Chinese economic data. China's Hang Seng ended 2% down while Japan's Nikkei managed to eke out a 0.32% gain.