Nifty hits fresh record highs in volatile trade

The Nifty ended on a positive note on Wednesday after a highly volatile session, hitting fresh record highs.

A sharp recovery was seen in the Nifty post noon on Wednesday. At close, Nifty was up 118 points, or 0.53 per cent, to close at 22,474.05 levels, said Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities.

The broad market indices ended in the negative even as the advance-decline ratio fell sharply to 0.24:1. Private banks, IT, and healthcare stocks contributed to the gain in Nifty, Jasani said.

Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Retail Research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services, said the domestic equities made a comeback after a minor pause and continued to touch new highs.

The positive up-move was supported by buying in banking, IT, healthcare, and auto stocks.

The broader market, however, continued to witness selling with Nifty Midcap 100 down 0.5 per cent and Nifty Smallcap 100 down 2 per cent, Khemka said.

Sectoral rotation was seen in the market with private banks gaining momentum and supporting the index. The NBFC came under pressure after RBI’s disciplinary action against IIFL and JM Financials.

"We expect the largecaps to drive the market in the near term, while midcap and smallcap could remain under pressure," he said.

On the global front, US Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech later on Wednesday night will be crucial as it will provide some insights into the upcoming policy direction.

Also, investors would watch out for US Job data, which would provide more cues from an interest rate decision point of view, Khemka said.