Sensex, Nifty 50 both hit fresh lifetime highs

Key domestic indices logged modest gains amid mixed global cues on Monday, December 14, 2020. The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty both hit fresh lifetime highs, extending previous sessions' gains. Sensex climbed 154.45 points or 0.34 per cent to settle at 46,253.46. The NSE Nifty 50 index also added 44.30 points or 0.33 per cent to settle at 13,558.15. Similarly, Nifty Bank gained 141.05 points or 0.46 per cent to close at 30,745.90.

The broader market at BSE also gained outperforming the Sensex. The BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.79 per cent while the BSE Small-Cap index ended 0.74 per cent up.

On the BSE, 1,921 shares rose and 1,117 shares fell. A total of 178 shares were unchanged. In the case of the Nifty 50 index, 31 stocks advanced and 19 declined. The top five gainers on Nifty 50 were ONGC (up 5.94 per cent), Larsen & Turbo (up 4.28 per cent), Cipla (up 4.11 per cent), Coal India (up 3.98 per cent) and IOC (up 2.61 per cent). The top losers on the Nifty 50 were Eicher Motors (down 2.52 per cent), Hero MotoCorp (down 2.24 per cent), Mahindra &Mahindra (down 2.03 per cent), HDFC Life (down 1.38 per cent) and Tech Mahindra (down 1.20 per cent).

The market sentiment was upbeat amid positive global cues following the progress in coronavirus vaccine. Robust inflows from foreign institutional investors and improving domestic economic scenario also boosted the investor's risk appetite.

COVID-19 Update

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide were at 7,22,53,804 with 16,12,367 deaths. India reported 3,52,586 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,43,355 deaths while 93,88,159 patients have been discharged, data showed. India's Covid-19 recovery rate has improved to 94.98%, in the past 24 hours.

WPI and IIP numbers

The rate of inflation, based on monthly Wholesale Price Index (WPI), rose to 1.55 per cent (provisional) in November 2020 (over November 2019) compared with 0.58 per cent during the corresponding month of the previous year. The figure was 1.48 per cent in October 2020. Meanwhile, Industrial output of the country for October this year was at 3.6 per cent, against 0.5 per cent in the previous month. According to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation data released on Friday, the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) logged the highest growth since the end of March when the COVID-19 hit lockdowns came into force.

As per the data, in October, manufacturing sector production witnessed a growth of 3.5 per cent and electricity grew 11.2 per cent while mining contracted 1.5 per cent. For the same period in 2019, IIP had contracted 6.6 per cent. India's wholesale price gauge marginally picked up in November, data showed on Monday, with prices rising 1.55 per cent from a year earlier. The annual wholesale price index rose in November, mainly because of an increase in prices of manufactured items in the festival season, from a year earlier, compared to 1.62 per cent rise predicted by analysts in a poll.