The Sensex touched the 48,000-mark for the first time on Monday, after the markets jumped nearly 300 points on opening. It touched an all-time high of 48,168.22 points. Similarly, the Nifty50 on the National Stock Exchange touched a high of 14,114.15 points. Sensex was tracking gains in index majors ITC, Infosys and ICICI Bank as investors cheered domestic COVID-19 vaccine approvals.
However, the market could not sustain itself at higher zones. Just after the initial session, the key indices fell by around 150 points. Subsequently, investors dived into the market to buy stocks in decline which triggered another uplift.
Hopes on the vaccine front, along with improved auto sales and GST collection data supported the market sentiments on Monday.
TCS, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, and Wipro all hit 52-week highs ahead of their Q3 results. TCS was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising 3.54% at the time of writing, followed by ONGC, SBI, L&T, Infosys, HCL Tech, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank. On the other hand, HDFC, Asian Paints and Reliance Industries were among the laggards.
At the time of writing, Sensex was trading at 48,111.45, higher by 242.47 points or 0.67% from its previous close of 47,868.98. The Nifty50 on the NSE was trading at 14,112.65, higher by 94.15 points or 0.54% from its previous close.
Manish Hathiramani, technical analyst with Deen Dayal Investments said: "We were successful in claiming the 14,000 mark but closed below it. There might be a psychological resistance at this level."
"However, the trend remains bullish and we should be headed higher to 14,100-14,150 sooner than later. The current support is at 13,500-13,600 and since the risk reward is skewed at this juncture, a buy on dips strategy is advised with strict trailing stops."
Amongst sectors, losses were witnessed in realty, media, banking and financial services indices. On the other hand, metal, IT, pharma, auto and FMCG space traded in the green.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 506.21 crore on a net basis on Friday, according to provisional exchange data.
Domestic equities continue to look firm. Strong economic key data in terms of GST collections, power demand and railway freight for December 2020 will continue to offer strength to the market, said Binod Modi Head-Strategy at Reliance Securities.
Additionally, final approval for two COVID-19 vaccines and likely commencement of the inoculation process soon are positive for the markets and economy.
"Positive FPI flows are expected to sustain in subsequent weeks. Further, DIIs turning net buyers on Friday was also a positive indication for the market. 3QFY21 earnings and Union Budget will be crucial events for the market in the near term, which will offer clarity about the sustainability of demand momentum," he stated.
Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Seoul and Hong Kong were trading on a positive note in mid-session deals, while Tokyo was in the red.
Meanwhile, the global oil benchmark, Brent crude futures, were trading 0.98% higher at USD 52.31 per barrel.