FIRST TRADE: Indices scale new record highs; Sensex surpasses 77,500 and Nifty crosses 23,600 for the first time

Stock market today: Domestic blue-chip indices Sensex and Nifty scaled record highs on Wednesday (June 19) after soft U.S. retail sales data reinforced expectations of the Federal Reserve cutting rates in September. NSE Nifty surpassed 23,600 mark and Sensex crossed 77,500 for the first time. Last seen, Sensex was up 99.1 points or 0.13 per cent at 77,400.24 and Nifty rose 22.55 points or 0.09 per cent at 23,580.45. 

"Higher highs and higher lows are clear indicators of a strong bull rally. This is happening now in the Nifty which has set four days of record highs. Net institutional activity has turned positive with both FIIs and DIIs turning buyers," said Dr. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.

Dr. Vijayakumar added the US 10-year bond yield declining to 4.21 % may nudge FIIs to buy more. This is pushing FII-heavy stocks like HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank which have more room to appreciate since their valuations are fair.

As per Dr. Vijayakumar, economic news continues to be positive. Net direct tax collections have shot up by 21 per cent. More importantly, advance tax collections have increased impressively by 27.38 per cent reflecting robust economic activity. In brief, it is an advantage bull.

In the broader market, Nifty Midcap 100 traded in the red, and Smallcap 100 traded flat with a positive bias. High-beta Nifty Bank was up 0.76 per cent at 50,825.65.

BUZZING STOCKS

Fertilizer stocks such as Rashtriya Chemical and Fertilizers, Fertilizers and  Chemicals Travancore edged higher after the government proposed to remove Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Sansera Engineering shares were up over 5 per cent after multiple block deals.

AMI Organics shares were up over 5 per cent after the company's QIP opened with the floor price fixed at Rs 1228.71 per share.

Le Travenues Technology shares were up over 17 per cent after Nomura Bought 66.98Lakh (1.73 per cent) shares at Rs 159.09 per share.

Conversely, Indus Tower shares were down over 5 per cent after 19 per cent of equity changed hands via block deals. 

Gland Pharma shares were down over 1 per cent after multiple block deals. 

ZF Commercials shares were down nearly 4 per cent after 7.5 per cent equity changed hands via b

Catch all the updates of June 19 session on Dalal Street here. For all other news related to business, politics, tech and auto, visit Zeebiz.com. 

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