The benchmark BSE Sensex rallied nearly 800 points and the NSE Nifty soared over 200 points to hit their respective record highs in early trade Thursday (23), as counting of votes for the Lok Sabha election began.
According to traders, investor sentiment was boosted by initial trends that suggested a win for the ruling NDA.
Amid market euphoria, the rupee also appreciated 26 paise to 69.40 against the US dollar in opening trade.
The 30-share index zoomed over 2 per cent to hit an intra-day high of 39,901.59. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty too spurted more than 2 per cent to touch a record of 11,968.95.
In the previous session, the Sensex ended 140.41 points, or 0.36 per cent, higher at 39,110.21; and the broader NSE Nifty rose 28.80 points, or 0.25 per cent, to 11,737.90.
Top Sensex gainers in morning trade include IndusInd Bank, SBI, L&T, PowerGrid, Yes Bank, Kotak Bank, ICICI Bank, RIL, HDFC, Bharti Airtel and Axis Bank, rallying up to 7 per cent.
While, Vedanta, ONGC, Bajaj Auto and Sun Pharma slipped up to 1.92 per cent.
Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors sold equity worth Rs 965.02 crore on Wednesday, while domestic institutional investors sold shares to the tune of Rs 157.75 crore, provisional data available with stock exchanges showed.
Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in China, Japan and Korea were trading on a negative note in their respective early sessions.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, was trading at 70.58 per barrel, lower by 0.58 per cent.
(PTI)
Clifford had previously pleaded guilty to the murders of BBC sports commentator John Hunt’s wife and two daughters at their home in northwest of London, in July 2024. (Photo: Hertfordshire Police /Handout via REUTERS)
Crossbow murderer found guilty of raping ex-girlfriend
A 26-YEAR-OLD man who murdered three women in a crossbow and stabbing attack has been found guilty of raping one of them, his ex-girlfriend, a British court ruled on Thursday.
Kyle Clifford had previously pleaded guilty to the murders of BBC sports commentator John Hunt’s wife and two daughters at their home in Bushey, northwest of London, in July 2024.
The attack led to a manhunt before Clifford was found injured hours later in a north London cemetery.
A jury at Cambridge Crown Court on Thursday convicted Clifford of raping 25-year-old Louise Hunt before killing her.
His sentencing for all the crimes is scheduled for Tuesday.
Clifford had admitted to murdering Carol Hunt, 61, and her daughters Louise and Hannah, 28. He had also pleaded guilty to charges of false imprisonment and possessing offensive weapons but denied raping Louise.
During the trial, the court heard that after killing Carol Hunt, Clifford waited for an hour before attacking Louise, tying her up, raping her, and then killing her with a crossbow. He later killed Hannah when she returned home from work.
The prosecution described Clifford, a former soldier, as committing a "violent, sexual act of spite" and said he was "enraged" after Louise ended their 18-month relationship. They told the court that he had "carefully planned" the attack.
Less than 24 hours before the killings, Clifford had searched for a podcast by social media influencer Andrew Tate, according to the prosecution. They argued that the murders were driven by the "violent misogyny promoted" by Tate.
Justice Joel Bennathan called Clifford’s crimes "dreadful" and "almost unspeakable".
(With inputs from AFP)