Sensex, Nifty Surge To Fresh Record Highs

(RTTNews) - Indian shares rose notably to hit new record highs on Wednesday, after having opened on a lackluster note earlier in the day on the back of mixed global cues.

The benchmark S&P/BSE Sensex jumped 620.73 points, or 0.80 percent, to 78,674.25 while the broader NSE Nifty index closed at 23,868.80, up 147.50 points, or 0.62 percent, from its previous close.

Market heavyweight Reliance Industries topped the gainers list to rise nearly 4 percent to a record high.

Bharti Airtel and UltraTech Cement both rallied around 3 percent while Grasim and Britannia Industries rose by 1.5 percent each.

Among the prominent decliners, Hindalco, Tata Steel, Bajaj Auto, Mahindra & Mahindra and Apollo Hospital Enterprise all fell around 2 percent.

Global sentiment was fragile as a result of political uncertainty in France and in the wake of hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials.

Investors also braced for the release of key U.S. inflation reading, due later this week for additional clues on the Federal Reserve's rate trajectory.

Oil prices inched higher in European trade as geopolitical risks from the Middle East conflict and confidence surrounding the summer driving season outweighed industry data showing a surprise jump in U.S. stockpiles.

Gold edged lower on dollar strength and hawkish Fed comments.