Indian markets world’s fifth largest, again!

 India’s market capitalisation currently stands at $3.31 trillion, according to Bloomberg data. Market-cap had dipped to $2.98 trillion at the end of March.

The Nifty index rose 0.54 per cent to close at 18,598. The Sensex rose 0.55 per cent or 344 points to close at 62,846. Both the indices are nearing their lifetime-high levels and experts say they may comfortably cross it during the week.

“Volumes did not expand even as the Nifty kept surging higher,” said Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities. Probably, the volumes were affected as other global markets in the US and Europe were shut for holiday.

Markets were buoyant on the back of gains in global markets after US President Joe Biden and Congressional leaders reached a tentative deal to raise the debt ceiling in the US over the weekend. The Bill is expected to be voted on later this week. Jasani said 18,696 is the next resistance for Nifty, while 18,508 could be a support.

“Going ahead, we expect the index to resolve out of the intermediate hurdle of 18,500 and challenge a lifetime high of 18,900 in the coming month. Meanwhile, we do not foresee the Nifty breaching the key support threshold of 17,800. In the process, we expect broader markets to accelerate upward momentum fuelled by the 18 month’s consolidation breakout in the Midcap index,” ICICI Securities said in a report.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPI) inflows in May are nearing ₹25,000 crore. FPIs bought stocks worth ₹1,758 crore in the cash segment on Monday and domestic institutional investors were buyers for ₹853 crore.

“One notable sector that has been consistently outperforming the overall market is the banking sector. The banking stocks have shown remarkable strength and have been key drivers of the market’s upward trajectory. Additionally, the metals sector has also been performing well, showcasing positive momentum,” said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities.