Markets hit fresh lifetime highs; Nifty breaches 13,000-mark

New Delhi: Markets rallied to fresh lifetime highs, with the Nifty breaching 13,000-mark on Tuesday led by rally in banking, financial, realty and auto counters amid foreign capital inflows, strong rupee.

The BSE Sensex ended 445.87 points or 1.01 percent higher at a record 44,523.02. The 30-share index scaled a record intra-day high of 44,601.63.

Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty rose 128.70 points or 1 percent to close above the 13,000-mark for the first time at 13,055.15.

Major gainers in the Sensex pack were Axis Bank, M&M, HDFC Bank, ITC, SBI, ICICI Bank, Maruti, Kotak Bank, Sun Pharma, Tech Mahindra, HUL and Tata Steel, rising upto 4.02 percent. On the other hand, major losers were HDFC, Titan, Nestle, Bharti Airtel, ONGC, Infosys, TCS and Bajaj Finance, falling upto 1.47 percent.

Sector-wise, BSE bankex, auto and finance indices rose up to 2.37 percent.

Foreign institutional investors remained net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 4,738.44 crore on Monday, according to provisional exchange data.

Meanwhile, the rupee appreciated 10 paise to close at 74.01 against the US dollar.

In the previous session, Sensex ended 194.90 points or 0.44 per cent higher at 44,077.15, and NSE Nifty rose 67.40 points or 0.52 per cent to close at 12,926.45.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul ended with significant gains, while Shanghai closed in the red. Stock exchanges in Europe were trading on a mixed note in early deals.Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.85 per cent to USD 46.45 per barrel.