IT stocks drive Nifty to hit fresh all-time high, mixed sentiments erase gains

Closing Bell: National Stock Exchange’s Nifty 50 hit a fresh all-time high of 25,129.60 on August 28 led by a strong and extended buying spree in Information & Technology stocks as investors eye the upcoming rate cuts from the Federal Reserve on September 18. 

As the trading session nears its closure, the domestic bourses retracted as Bombay Stock Exchange’s 30-share Sensex ended 73.80 points or 0.09 per cent higher at 81,785.56 while Nifty 50 settled 34.60 points or 0.14 per cent higher at 25,052.35. 

Nifty was driven by strong gains in LTI Mindtree which surged as much as 8 per cent intraday and ended 6.31 per cent higher at 6,114.60 apiece. Wipro, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, TCS, and HCL Tech were other key IT stocks that drove the index to a fresh high. 

Apart from IT stocks, Divi’s Lab, Bharti Airtel, IndusInd Bank, Sun Pharma, and Bajaj Auto were other top gainers at NSE on Wednesday. 

On the other hand, the market faced a tug of war with market leaders such as Maruti Suzuki, Asian Paints, and Adani Enterprises losing nearly 1.3 per cent each in today’s trading session. Shri Ram Finance, Britannia, Nestle India, and Tata Consumers were other top laggards in today’s trade. 

In terms of sectoral performance, the Nifty IT and Nifty Healthcare Index led the charge with 1.64 and 1.2 per cent gains respectively. Whereas, banking, auto, FMCG, Consumer Durables, and Oil & Gas indices ended in the red. 

Broader market indices also exhibited mixed performance on August 28 as broader mid-cap and small-cap stocks ended on a negative note while Nifty Midcap 50 rose marginally. 

Asian markets also ended on a flat note with South Korea’s KOSPI and Japan’s Nikkei inching higher while China’s stock markets ending lower.