FIRST TRADE: Indices hit record highs; Sensex rises over 600 pts; Nifty surpasses 22,000

Stock market today: Domestic equity indices Sensex and Nifty 50 hit their respective record highs in the opening deals on Monday, January 15, amid encouraging Q3 numbers by IT leaders.

The S&P BSE Sensex crossed the 73,000 mark, and Nifty exceeded the 22,000 level for the first time. Last seen, both indices were up over 0.60 per cent. Sensex was up 495.65 points at 73,064.1, and NSE Nifty was up 138.35 points at 22,032.9.

"The rally in the market, primarily driven by momentum, is now getting support from fundamentals. A 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," said Dr. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

Dr. Vijayakumar added that the IT index, which shot up by 5 per cent on Friday, will remain firm since HCL Tech and Wipro have more room on the upside. Nifty has broken out on the upside from the consolidation range and shows signs of a further up move. An important driver of the rally is RIL, which is moving up on large delivery-based buying on news of the commissioning of the Dhirubhai Ambani Green Energy project in H2 of 2024. RIL, large-cap IT, and banking majors can provide fodder for the bulls in the near term.

Meanwhile, the Nifty Mid Cap 100 and Small Cap 100 opened in positive territory. High-beta Nifty Bank was up 0.47 per cent at 47,932.45.

BUZZING STOCKS

HCL Tech shares were up over 3 per cent after the company posted good Q3 results.

Wipro shares were up over 8 per cent after the IT company posted better-than-estimated Q3 results.

Avenue Supermarts, the parent company of Dmart, shares were up over half a per cent after the company posted in-line numbers.

Conversely, Vedanta shares were down nearly 1 per cent after the company's subsidiary, Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL), received a Goods and Services Tax (GST) demand.

Zomato shares were down over 3 per cent after 4.5 crore shares (0.5 per cent) worth Rs 622 crore changed hands via block deals.

HDFC Life shares were down nearly 3 per cent after the company posted Q3 results.

GLOBAL MARKETS

Asian shares got off to a sluggish start on Monday, ahead of a week packed with geopolitical risk, Chinese economic data, and earnings reports from major U.S. banks.

A holiday in the United States made for thin trading, but at least there was progress on averting an imminent government shutdown as congressional leaders agreed on another stopgap spending bill.

(With inputs from agencies.)

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