Nifty hits record high; pharma shares advance

The domestic equity benchmarks extended gains in early afternoon trade. The Nifty traded above the 25,100 level after hitting the day's low of 24,964.65 in morning trade. Pharma shares advanced for the third consecutive trading session.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex jumped 245.74 points or 0.30% to 81,957.50. The Nifty 50 index added 86.65 points or 0.33% to 25,104.07.

The Nifty clocked an all-time high of 25,114.05 in early afternoon trade.

In the broader market, The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.19% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.29%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,110 shares rose and 1,704 shares fell. A total of 113 shares were unchanged.

Derivatives:

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, added 1.48% to 13.84. The Nifty 29 August 2024 futures were trading at 25,125, at a premium of 20.93 points as compared with the spot at 25,104.07.

The Nifty option chain for the 29 August 2024 expiry showed maximum Call OI of 85.5 lakh contracts at the 25,000 strike price. Maximum Put OI of 168.4 lakh contracts were seen at 25,000 strike price.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Pharma index rose 0.61% to 22,866.95. The index gained 1.50% in three consecutive trading sessions.

Granules India (up 2.39%), Biocon (up 1.91%), Torrent Pharmaceuticals (up 1.49%), Zydus Lifesciences (up 1.31%), Aurobindo Pharma (up 1.16%), Lupin (up 1.07%), Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries (up 0.93%), Alkem Laboratories (up 0.71%), Abbott India (up 0.63%) and J B Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals (up 0.61%) advanced.

On the other hand, Gland Pharma (down 1.11%), Natco Pharma (down 0.88%) and Mankind Pharma (down 0.83%) edged lower.

Zydus Lifesciences gained 1.31% after the pharma major received final approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to market Amantadine extended-release capsules, 68.5 mg, and tentative approval for 137 mg.

Stocks in Spotlight :

Roto Pumps advanced 4.70% after the company announced that it has received a purchase order worth Rs 11.89 crore in Dubai, for supply of progressive cavity pumps.

PNC Infra rose 0.59%. The civil construction company announced that it has been declared as L1 (first lowest) bidder for highway cum bridge project worth Rs 380 crore from National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

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