Sensex hits ninth straight life-high; IDFC surges

Reuters Market Eye - The BSE Sensex was down 0.23 percent while the broader Nifty lost 0.28 percent after earlier hitting a ninth consecutive record high.

The BSE rose as much as 0.31 percent to a record 22,620.65, while the Nifty rose as much as 0.36 percent to a life-high of 6.776.75 points, crossing Wednesday's highest 6.763.50.

Shares in IDFC Ltd surged as much as 8.8 percent after India's central bank on Wednesday granted preliminary licence to the infrastructure sector lender to set up a new bank.

Applicants who failed to win a licence at this stage slumped: LIC Housing Finance Ltd fell 6.8 percent, while L&T Finance Holdings Ltd lost 9.4 percent.

 

Investors also booked profits in some blue chips, with Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd down 1.1 percent.

Overseas investors bought Indian shares worth 5.95 billion rupees on Wednesday, provisional exchange data show.

(Reporting by Indulal PM)