Triumph over $5 trillion as dividend whopper cheers market

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₹4.2 trillion overnight. Foreign investors trooped in after selling for two months, lifting India's stock market -- the world's fifth-largest and snapping at the heels of Hong Kong -- to a closing high of $5.05 trillion. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a provisional ₹4,670.95 crore on Thursday, while domestic institutions settled for ₹146.51 crore.

ALSO READ: India can sustain 7% growth in coming years: S&P’s Louis Kuijs The last trillion-dollar addition in market value from 5 December was led by bluechips including Reliance Industries Ltd, ICICI Bank Ltd, State Bank of India Ltd, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, and Bharti Airtel Ltd. This is the second consecutive year where the actual dividend is more than twice the initial budgeted number, which may lower government borrowings, lift capital expenditure and bolster economic growth. Market experts now believe the rally could continue over the two weeks, until the Lok Sabha election results on 4 June.

In an interview with Mint earlier this week, veteran investor Jim Rogers said he regretted passing up the chance to invest in India. However, he said, he will enter the market when the perfect opportunity arises, biding his time till then. Both the Nifty and Sensex indices rallied 1.6% each to fresh closing highs of 22,967.65 and 75,418.06.

The Nifty fell short of the 23,000-mark by just over six points intraday, clocking a new life-high of 22993.60. The Sensex kissed a fresh intraday high of 75499.91. The Nifty Midcap150 hit a fresh high of 19575.25 and the Nifty Smallcap 250 surged to 15972.85, as the broader markets joined the party.