Mumbai, Dec 30 (IANS): The ongoing market rally pushed the Indian equity market to new record highs on Wednesday with the NSE Nifty50 reaching just short of the 14,000-mark in the day's trade session.
The day's session was the sixth straight day of gains on the back of strong FII inflows of around Rs 1,824.52 crore on Wednesday.
Globally, Asian shares hit a record high but closed on a mixed note as investors bet on a strong economic recovery in 2021.
Similarly, European markets gained after the UK government approved the anti-Covid-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford.
Among sectors, auto, metals and realty were the main gainers whereas bank and pharma indices fell marginally.
In the day's session, healthy buying was seen in cement stocks with UltraTech, Shree Cement being the top gainers on the Nifty.
The Sensex closed at 47,746.22, higher by 133.14 points, or 0.28 per cent, from its previous close.
The Nifty50 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) ended at 13,981.95, higher by 49.35 points, or 0.35 per cent, from its previous close.
"On December 30, Nifty has closed just shy of the psychological 14,000 level which will come in for test on Thursday," said Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities.
"While the gains in Nifty have been small due to lower institutional participation, the broader market continues to see rotational buying."
Siddhartha Khemka, Head, Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services, said: "Strong FIIs inflow continue to support the positive sentiments."
"Going ahead, markets are likely to end 2020 on a high note on the back of strong global cues, sustained inflows, and improving macros trends. The December quarterly results will be the next key event for the market and is expected to be much better due to the strong festival season."
Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, said: "Domestic sentiment is upbeat, expecting a nod for Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid vaccine usage in India. Growth sectors like auto, realty and metal led the rally while defensives like pharma continued to remain under pressure."
"Although the market is at its most expensive valuation level, FPIs continue to pump in funds and roll the Indian market higher on a daily basis."