FIRST TRADE: Nifty Bank hits all-time high; Sensex jumps 450 points

Stock market today, May 29, 2023: The equity market opened on a strong note on May 29, Monday with the Nifty Bank hitting a fresh record high. The index breached the previous record of 44,151.80 touched on December 14, 2022, to scale the milestone of 44,330.15 levels, in the opening deals. Besides, the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex was ruling at 62,968.95, up 467 points, or 0.75 per cent while the NSE's Nifty50 traded at 18,619.35, up 120 points, or 0.65 per cent.

In its technical outlook, ICICI Securities said, "Going ahead, we expect the index to resolve out of intermediate hurdle of 18,500 and challenge lifetime high of 18,900 in the coming month. Meanwhile, we do not foresee the Nifty breaching the key support threshold of 17,800. In the process, we expect broader markets to accelerate upward momentum fuelled by 18-month-consolidation breakouts in the Midcap index. Hence, dips should be capitalised on to build a portfolio from a medium-term perspective."

BUZZING STOCKS

ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company jumped over nearly 12 per cent to Rs 1,230.60 on the BSE in the early trade as the ICICI Bank board has approved raising its stake in the company by 4 per cent in multiple transactions. The lender owns 48.02 per cent of the general insurance arm. ICICI Bank plans to acquire at least 2.5 per cent of the 4 per cent by September 9, 2024. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) shares were up nearly 3 per cent to Rs 1317.85  on the BSE after most brokerages raised their target prices on the stock post-March quarter numbers. City Union Bank, on the other hand, dropped nearly 9 per cent to Rs 127.95 on the BSE at the time of filing this report on disappointing Q4 numbers.