India’s Nifty 50, Sensex hit fresh closing highs

India’s Nifty 50 and Sensex stock indexes logged new closing highs on Friday and posted gains for the fourth week in a row, as U.S. data boosted bets that the Federal Reserve may be less hawkish than expected.

The blue-chip Nifty index closed 0.74% up at 18,826.00, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.74% to 63,384.58.

Both indexes came within 0.25% of their record highs in the minutes before close of trade, while the volatility index fell to a more than three-year low of 10.84.

Eleven of the 13 major sectoral indexes rose, with high weightage financials leading gains after Morgan Stanley said large private banks remain in a sweet spot due to asset quality normalisation.

The brokerage identified ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and IndusInd Bank as its top sectoral picks.

Broader indexes also extended gains, with the midcap index settling at new record high of 35,144.30 and smallcap index closing at its highest since April 11, 2022.

Analysts expect the ongoing rally to sustain, albeit after a period of consolidation.

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