Latest News | After Daunting March 2020, Sensex Ends Above Famed 50K-mark for First Time

New Delhi, Feb 3 (PTI) From a daunting March 2020 to a rewarding February 2021, equity benchmark Sensex has swung between extreme lows and highs in less than a year before closing above the 50,000-mark for the first time on Wednesday.

Stock markets had witnessed volatile trends during the last year, with the benchmark crashing to its one-year low of 25,638.9 on March 24, only to roar back to life during the later part of 2020 and hit its record high of 47,896.97 on the last day of trade on December 31.

The 30-share BSE benchmark had twice hit the 50,000-mark this year but could not close above this historic level.

Earlier on January 21, the benchmark had reached its all-time peak of 50,184.01. On Tuesday (February 2), the key index jumped to an intra-day high of 50,154.48 before closing at 49,797.72.

The index finally closed above the historic mark on Wednesday, mainly propelled by the euphoria over the Union Budget. The Sensex hit its lifetime high of 50,526.39 during the day, before finishing at 50,255.75.

With this rally, the index has nearly doubled from the massive lows it faced in March last year at the onset of the COVID-19 crisis.

"Markets extended the momentum for yet another session and gained nearly a percent. After the initial hiccups, the benchmark gradually inched higher and made a new record high as well.

"The Budget has completely turned the market mood and the ongoing earnings season has also been decent so far," said Ajit Mishra, VP - Research, Religare Broking Ltd.

Thanks to the ongoing rally, investor wealth has jumped by over Rs 12.31 lakh crore in three days, taking the market capitalisation of all BSE-listed companies to a record Rs 198.43 lakh crore.  

Proving to be a dreadful month for the domestic stock market, March 2020 saw the Sensex sinking a massive 8,828.8 points or 23 per cent as concerns over the pandemic's impact on the economy ravaged investor sentiments.

In 2020, the benchmark index made monthly gains in seven, while closing with losses in five. From witnessing gigantic losses to record-shattering gains, investors witnessed a wide array of emotions in 2020.

"The Budget is fuelling a rally in all economy driven sectors along with banking. The uptick in global markets, resumption of FII flows and strong earnings trend coming from Q3 results are other factors that are taking markets higher," said Jaideep Hansraj, MD & CEO, Kotak Securities.

Markets witnessed profit-taking in the last part of January this year after recording massive gains earlier in the month.

Mishra said this Budget rally is expected to continue. However, participants should be selective in their approach now. Going ahead, global cues and corporate earnings would also be on the radar, he added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)