Market opening: SENSEX, NIFTY50 hit record high, Bank Nifty at all-time high, JSW Steel, Adani Ports top gainers

The Indian equity benchmark indices opened at record highs on Monday, December 1, supported by strong gains in metal and PSU bank stocks. Investor sentiment remained upbeat following the release of robust GDP data, which further bolstered market confidence.

The Indian economy recorded a six-quarter high growth of 8.2% in July-September, as factories churned out more products in anticipation of a consumption boost from the GST rate cut, according to government data.

At 9:25 AM, the S&P BSE SENSEX was up 309 points, or 0.36%, to the 86,015.67 level, while NSE’s NIFTY50 was at the 26,293.80 level, rising 90.85 points, or 0.35%.

Both the SENSEX and NIFTY50 scaled fresh record highs at 86,159.02 and 26,325.80, respectively.

The broader markets also opened on a positive note, with the Nifty Midcap 100 rising 0.28% and the Nifty Smallcap 100 advancing 0.51% in early trade. The Nifty Midcap 100, however, touched new record of 61,308.70 level.

Meanwhile, the Bank Nifty opened above the 60,000 mark for the first time at 60,102.05, driven by a strong rally in State Bank of India, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Bank of Baroda.

According to exchange data, on Friday, the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth ₹3,795.72 crore, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities worth ₹4,148.48 crore on a net basis.

As many as 2,794 stocks traded on the NSE during the early session, among which 1,880 advanced, 834 declined, and 80 shares remained unchanged.

This indicates that the market's breadth is favourable towards advances.

Meanwhile, 61 stocks hit their one-year highs in the early trade, while 45 stocks touched their 52-week lows.

Further, 44 stocks hit their upper circuits, while 30 hit their lower circuits.

India VIX, the volatility gauge, was trading at 11.18 levels, down 3.8%.

As many as 42 stocks advanced, while 8 declined in the opening session on the NIFTY50 index.

JSW Steel was the biggest contributor, gaining 1.83%, followed by Adani Ports (1.4%), Tata Motors PV (1.09%), State Bank of India (0.91%) and Bharat Electronics (0.85%).

On the flip side, ITC (-0.83%), Tata Consumer Products (-0.49%), Bajaj Finance (-0.47%), IndiGo (-0.46%) and Nestle India (-0.31%) were the top losers on the 50-share index.