Sensex zooms 569 points to fresh record above 61,000; Nifty tops 18,300-mark

Carrying on its winning run to the sixth consecutive session, equity benchmark Sensex rallied 569 points to close at a new peak on Thursday, propelled by gains in index majors HDFC (Housing) HDFC Banks,  ICICI Bank and ITC amid positive macro cues and upbeat global markets.

At close, for the first time, the BSE Sensex settled 568.90 points or 0.94percent higher at 61,305.95. Similarly, the NSE Nifty surged 176.80 points or 0.97percent to a new lifetime closing high of 18,338.55. ITC was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, followed by HDFC Bank, PowerGrid, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank and NTPC. On the other hand, TCS, HCL Tech, Bajaj Finance and Asian Paints were among the laggards.

Shares in Wipro surged 5 per cent to a one-year high of Rs 708.50 after the IT major reported a 19 per cent rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 2,931 crore for the second quarter compared to Rs 2,466 crore in the same period last year.

Retail inflation in September also slowed to a 5-month low of 4.4percent on moderating food prices. Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Seoul and Tokyo ended with strong gains, while Shanghai was in the red. Stock exchanges in Europe were trading on a positive note in mid-session deals. Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude rose 1.02 percent to USD84.03 per barrel.

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