Sensex closes above 49,000-mark for first time; IT stocks lead rally

New Delhi: Markets closed at fresh record highs on Monday amid massive foreign fund inflows.

The BSE Sensex ended 486.81 points or 1 percent higher at 49,269.32. It had touched a record intra-day high of 49,303.79. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty surged 137.50 points or 0.96 percent to finish at 14,484.75. It hit a fresh intra-day high of 14,498.20.

Top gainers in the Sensex pack were HCL Tech, Infosys, HDFC, Maruti, Tech Mahindra, Bajaj Auto, M&M, ONGC, TCS, HUL, HDFC Bank, and Bharti Airtel, rising upto 6.09 percent. On the other hand, major losers were Bajaj Finserve, Bajaj Finance, RIL, LT, Kotak Bank, SBI, NTPC, IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank and Powergrid, losing upto 1.92 percent.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 6,029.83 crore on Friday, according to exchange data. The rupee depreciated by 16 paise to close at 73.40 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday.

Germany`s DAX lost 0.75%, Britain`s FTSE 100, Italy`s FTSE MIB, and France`s CAC 40 fell about half a percent each, and Spain`s IBEX fell 0.1%. With Asian stock markets also lower, MSCI`s All Country World index, which tracks stocks across 49 countries, was down 0.2%, just off Friday`s record high. Futures for the S&P 500 slipped 0.6% from record highs, after gaining 1.8% last week. EUROSTOXX 50 futures eased 0.1% and FTSE futures were flat, as per a Reuters report.