Mumbai, Dec 9 (Agencies) : Markets opened at an all time high as widely expected following the Bharatiya Janata Party breezing through three of the four states that went to polls. The 'mini celebration' in the opening trades is on hopes of a similar victory for the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in next year's general elections.
The Sensex gained 433 points or 2% at 21,430 and the Nifty opened at an all time high at 6,405, up 145 points.
In the broader markets, gains were moderate with the midcap index up 0.9% and the smallcap index added 0.8% as compared to the near 2% gain seen on the Sensex.
All the sectoral indices were in the green with the defensives like IT, FMCG and Health Care indices among the laggards, with a marginal 0.2-0.4% gain.
Banking index – Bankex and Capital Goods up 3% each were the top sectoral gainers followed by Auto, Realty, Power, Oil & Gas and Metal indices all gaining 1% each.
Wipro down 0.4% was the only scrip in the red among Sensex-30.
ICICI Bank up 3.5% was the top gainer in the opening trades along with Sesa Sterlite, HDFC Bank, Tata Power, Bharti Airtel and SBI up 2-3.5%.
ONGC, Hindalco, NTPC, RIL, HDFC, BHEL, Hero MotoCorp, Tata Motors, Gail India, Dr Reddys Lab, Mahindra & Mahindra and Tata Steel up 1-1.8% were the other prominent gainers.
The market breadth was very positive. 859 stocks advanced while 238 stocks declined on the BSE.
Meanwhile, most Asian markets moved higher, energized by a potent cocktail of upbeat Chinese trade data, a weaker yen and a firm finish on Wall Street.
Both the dollar and the euro extended their gains on the yen, with the single currency hitting a five-year high in what should be a boost to Japanese exports, profits and stocks.
The Nikkei share index jumped 1.8% and was fast approaching last week's peak at 15,794. South Korean stocks added 1% and MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.2%.