Sensex opens at record high, turns choppy in early trade

Mumbai, Dec 18: Equity benchmark Sensex opened on a choppy note on Friday as profit-booking emerged at fresh highs in early trade amid persistent foreign fund inflows.

After opening at its lifetime intra-day high of 47,026.02, the 30-share BSE index pared the gains to trade 141.30 points or 0.30 per cent lower at 46,749.04.

Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty slipped 44.90 points or 0.33 per cent to 13,695.80. It hit a high of 13,713.55 in early trade. It touched an intra-day high of 13,771.45.

ONGC was the top laggard in the Sensex pack, shedding around 3 per cent, followed by IndusInd Bank, HDFC twins, Bajaj Finance and Kotak Bank.

On the other hand, Infosys, HCL Tech, TCS, Nestle India and Bajaj Auto were among the gainers.

In the previous session, Sensex settled 223.88 points or 0.48 per cent up at 46,890.34 -- its new closing record. NSE Nifty also rose 58 points or 0.42 per cent to a new closing high of 13,740.70.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 2,355.25 crore on a net basis on Thursday, according to provisional exchange data.

According to traders, profit-booking has emerged at higher levels.

Domestic equities continue to look firm and resilient. A record FPIs flows remain a key driving force for the market, said Binod Modi, Head- Strategy at Reliance Securities.

"Strong prospects of earnings recovery, satisfactory progress on vaccination along with consistent improvement in recovery rate from COVID-19 cases, weak dollar and depressed interest rate scenario continue to act as key tailwinds for Indian equities to attract FPIs flows," he noted.

Going forward, while markets continue to look buoyant on its underlying strengths, rich valuations and rise in input costs may act as key threats for a broad-based rally, he added.

US markets finished at record highs as Congressional leaders look close to finalising fiscal stimulus to support businesses and individuals hit by resurgence of COVID-19, he said.

He further stated that the dollar index slipped below from the 90 level, which continues to bode well for emerging markets including India.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai and Seoul were trading on a positive note in mid-session deals, while Hong Kong and Tokyo were in the red.

Meanwhile, the global oil benchmark Brent crude futures were trading 0.23 per cent lower at USD 51.38 per barrel.