Sensex closes at new peak, Nifty flat as oil simmers

Auto and consumer durable stocks played a key role in driving the Sensex to a fresh record at 33,731 today, but oil prices remained on the boil, keeping a lid on any further upmove.

The NSE Nifty slid from record and ended flat after profit went off the table.

Investors observed usual caution following developments related to shake-up in Saudi Arabia and President Donald Trump commencing his Asia trip with a visit to Japan.

The 30-share Sensex reached a new peak during the day but lost its grip before settling at 33,731.19 -- a fresh closing high -- up 45.63 points, or 0.14 per cent. It breached the previous closing record of 33,685.56.

The gauge had gained 112.34 points in the previous session on Friday. As for the 50-issue NSE Nifty, it was an intra-day record, but finished almost at its previous level, down 0.70 point, or 0.01 per cent, at 10,451.80. The gauge had closed at a record 10,452.50 on November 3.

Auto stocks such as Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Ashok Leyland and TVS Motors were in fast lane, rallying by up to 3.28 per cent.

"After a subdued opening, the market reversed to a high led by buying in autos and some oil companies in expectation of improved refining margin. But market lost its gain due to weak opening in the European market and rising oil prices," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services Ltd.

Better-than-expected earnings from index heavyweights made investors build on their bets too, according to a trader. Titan Company soared nearly 19 per cent after it recorded 67.44 per cent jump in its net profit for the second quarter to September. State-owned explorer ONGC was on the top of the league in the Sensex pack, adding 3.81 per cent at Rs 198.65, after global crude prices jumped to a more than two-year high. Others that went up included Cipla, TCS, Wipro, SBI, Adani Ports and HDFC Ltd, rising by up to 2.47 per cent. Stock of M&M rallied 2.49 per cent after reports that the company would consider bonus shares issue later this week.

Investors are holding on to hopes that the government's announcement of big-bang financial package last month as part of broader efforts will spur the economy.

The BSE consumer durable goods was the high point, surging 8.60 per cent, followed by auto, IT and realty. A similar trend saw the mid-cap index go up by 0.46 per cent and small-cap by 0.31 per cent.

Improved liquidity in the market amid continuous pumping in of sufficient funds was instrumental in the creation of more bets. DIIs bought shares worth a net Rs 33.40 crore while FPIs net sold shares worth Rs 9,690.84 crore on Friday, as per provisional data. Asian stocks were mixed. Key indices in Europe held steady in their opening session.