Record close for Sensex above 53,000 pts

Mumbai: Equity benchmark BSE Sensex jumped 194 points to close above the 53,000-mark for the first time on Wednesday, propelled by metal, finance and banking stocks, as investors were in buying mode ahead of a reshuffle of the Union Cabinet.

However, a weakening rupee and lacklustre global cues capped the gains, traders said. Overcoming a choppy start, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 193.58 points or 0.37 per cent to close at its fresh lifetime high of 53,054.76 points. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty rose 61.40 points or 0.39 per cent to its record peak of 15,879.65 points.

Tata Steel topped the Sensex gainers' chart, rallying 4.38 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finserv, IndusInd Bank, HDFC, Nestle India, Asian Paints, Sun Pharma and PowerGrid. On the other hand, Titan, Maruti, Reliance Industries, M&M, Tech Mahindra and Bajaj Auto were among the laggards, sliding up to 2.06 per cent.

"Markets bounced back into the positive terrain in afternoon trade led by metal stocks. Cabinet reshuffle today created interest amongst market participants as we saw some hectic activity in smaller private sector banks," said S Ranganathan, head (research) at LKP Securities.

Vinod Nair, head (research) at Geojit Financial Services, adds: "Global markets traded mixed ahead of the FOMC minutes as investors preferred safe-haven bonds and dollars. Healthy pre-sale numbers boosted buying interest in realty stocks while metal stocks followed the trend."

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market on Tuesday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 543.30 crore, as per exchange data.

BSE metal, realty, basic materials, capital goods and finance indices jumped as much as 2.31 per cent, while consumer durables, energy, oil and gas, auto and utilities nursed losses. Broader BSE midcap and smallcap indices rose up to 0.58 per cent. World stocks were subdued ahead of the release of the minutes from the US Federal Reserve's latest meeting.