Market gains momentum: Will it reach a record high today?

The BSE Sensex gained 0.12 per cent reaching a level of 81,798. The Nifty 50 index added 0.13 per cent to the 25,042 level.

Market Update at 11:15 AM: Despite weakness in most Asian markets, Indian benchmark indices gained positive momentum and moved closer to record highs today.

At 11:15 am, the BSE Sensex gained 0.12 per cent reaching a level of 81,798. The Nifty 50 index added 0.13 per cent to the 25,042 level. 

Within the Nifty 50, Larsen & Toubro, Maruti Suzuki and Cipla were among the leading gainers, whereas Bharat Petroleum Corporation, JSW Steel and Grasim Industries were among the market draggers.

With 1,579 shares gaining and 935 shares declining on the NSE, the advance-decline ratio strongly favoured advances.

In terms of sectoral performance, Nifty Realty, Nifty Media, and Nifty Pharma were the top performers, whereas Nifty FMCG and Nifty Metals were the only sectors to decline.

Market Update at 9:30 AM: Indian benchmarks opened the trading session flat, fluctuating between marginal gains and losses. At 9:30 am, the BSE Sensex edged down by 0.02 per cent reaching a level of 81,681. The Nifty 50 index edged down by 0.02 per cent to the 25,005 level.

Within the Nifty 50, HCL Technologies, Apollo Hospitals and Bajaj Finserv were among the leading gainers, whereas Bharat Petroleum Corporation, Shriram Finance and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the market draggers.

In contrast, the broader market demonstrated resilience and was trading significantly higher. With 1,329 shares rising on the NSE and 907 shares declining, the advance-decline ratio strongly remained in favour of advances.

In terms of sectoral performance, Nifty Media and Nifty Pharma were the best performers, while Nifty Financial Services and Nifty Bank experienced the notable decline.

Pre-Market Update at 8:30 AM: Wall Street indices had a mixed start to the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average reached a record close with a considerable gain of 0.16 per cent, while the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 declined by 0.85 per cent and 0.32 per cent, respectively, as investors opted to book profits following a strong uptrend in recent sessions.

All major Asian indices were in the red today, with the China’s Shenzhen Component Index leading the losses, down more than 1 per cent. The GIFT Nifty was trading below the previous close of Nifty futures, indicating a likely negative opening for Indian headline indices.

Oil prices surged around 3 per cent on Monday, driven by investor concerns over supply following reports of escalating conflict in the Middle East and production cuts in Libya.

The U.S. dollar surged from an eight-month low, while the yen strengthened against most currencies, as escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East drove investors towards safe-haven assets.

On August 26, both foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers, with FIIs purchasing shares worth Rs 483 crore and DIIs making a significant inflow of Rs 1,870 crore.