Mumbai: Indian stock markets scaled new heights on Wednesday as the BSE Sensex index crossed the 82,000 mark for the first time in its history, closing at 82,147 — a gain of 1.2 percent on the day — as foreign institutional investors poured in over ₹8,500 crore in a single session.
The milestone caps a remarkable rally that has seen Indian equities gain nearly 28 percent over the past twelve months, making the BSE Sensex one of the best-performing major indices in the world over that period.
What is Behind the Rally
Market analysts attributed the surge to a confluence of favourable factors. Foreign institutional investors have been rotating money from Chinese and Southeast Asian markets into India, attracted by the country's stable macroeconomic fundamentals, strong corporate earnings growth, and political stability ahead of the general budget.
Banking stocks led the charge on Wednesday, with HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and State Bank of India all gaining over two percent. Reliance Industries, the index heavyweight, touched a new all-time high of ₹3,287 per share.
The rally also received a boost from inflation data released earlier in the week, which showed consumer price inflation cooling to a 14-month low of 4.1 percent, raising hopes that the Reserve Bank of India may begin cutting interest rates at its next policy meeting.
Caution Advised
Not all analysts are euphoric. Several market veterans warned of stretched valuations, with the Sensex trading at nearly 22 times forward earnings — a significant premium to historical averages. "The rally is well-founded but investors should be selective and avoid chasing momentum blindly," said a senior portfolio manager at a leading domestic fund house.