The BSE Sensex breached the historic 84,000-mark for the first time on Friday morning, fueled by a global market rally after the US Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate, the first such move in over four years. The 30-share Sensex surged 975.1 points, reaching an all-time high of 84,159.90 in early trade, while the NSE Nifty jumped 271.1 points, touching a record peak of 25,686.90.

Key gainers among the 30 Sensex firms included Mahindra & Mahindra, JSW Steel, Maruti, Tata Steel, Larsen & Toubro, ICICI Bank, Power Grid, Nestle, Bharti Airtel, and Adani Ports. Tata Consultancy Services was the only stock to decline.

Asian markets also reflected positive sentiment, with Seoul, Tokyo, and Hong Kong trading higher, though Shanghai dipped into negative territory. This optimism followed a strong performance in US markets on Thursday, where both the Dow Jones and S&P 500 reached new record highs.

V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, attributed the surge to the global bull market led by the US. "The Dow and S&P 500 setting yet another record high yesterday highlights the strength of this ongoing rally," he noted.

On Thursday, the Sensex had already marked a lifetime high, closing 236.57 points up at 83,184.80. During the session, it spiked 825.38 points to an intra-day high of 83,773.61. The Nifty also gained 38.25 points to end at 25,415.80, hitting an intra-day peak of 25,611.95.

However, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold equities worth ?2,547.53 crore, according to exchange data. Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude edged down 0.29% to $74.66 per barrel.

Indian shares hit record highs just after the open Monday, tracking gains in regional peers after US economic data eased growth concerns, while investors await domestic quarterly growth data.

The NSE Nifty 50 index rose to 25,300 in early trade, while the S&P BSE Sensex climbed to 82,600, with both benchmarks hitting all-time highs.

India's Competition Commission (CCI) has raised concerns over the $8.5 billion merger between Reliance and Walt Disney’s media assets, fearing it could harm competition in the cricket broadcast market. The merger, which would create India’s largest entertainment company, is under scrutiny for potentially consolidating too much power over cricket broadcasting rights, a major revenue source given the sport's massive popularity in India.

Sources indicate that the CCI has privately communicated its reservations to both Disney and Reliance, asking them to justify why a deeper investigation should not be initiated. The main issue revolves around the merged entity’s control over lucrative cricket broadcast rights, which could give it excessive pricing power and dominance in attracting advertisers.

Reliance, majority-owned by Mukesh Ambani, and Disney had previously faced intense scrutiny over the merger’s potential to stifle competition in India’s media landscape. The combined entity would control 120 TV channels and two streaming services, positioning it as a formidable competitor to Sony, Zee Entertainment, Netflix, and Amazon.

Despite offering to divest fewer than 10 TV channels to alleviate market power concerns, Reliance and Disney have been unwilling to relinquish cricket rights, arguing that these contracts, expiring in 2027 and 2028, cannot be sold without the cricket board’s approval.

The CCI’s concerns could delay the merger approval, but both companies still have the opportunity to address these issues through further concessions. The regulator’s notice signals initial apprehension that the merger may harm competition, especially by raising advertising rates during live cricket events.

Cricket’s unparalleled popularity in India, combined with the merged entity's substantial share in the advertising market, has amplified fears that advertisers could face inflated costs. The companies have 30 days to respond to the CCI’s concerns and clarify their position.

Equity market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rebounded sharply in early trade on Tuesday, recovering from a severe drop in the previous session, influenced by a strong recovery in Asian markets.

The 30-share BSE Sensex surged 1,092.68 points to 79,852.08, while the NSE Nifty rose 327 points to 24,382.60. All 30 Sensex firms traded positively, with Tata Motors, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, JSW Steel, and Infosys among the top gainers.

Asian markets also saw significant gains, with Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong quoting higher. Japan's benchmark stock index soared over 10%.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 10,073.75 crore on Monday. Global oil benchmark Brent crude increased 1.27% to USD 77.27 per barrel.

Equity market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled in early trade on Thursday, continuing to decline for the fifth day running, dragged by Axis Bank and overall bearish global market trends.

The announcement of a hike in securities transaction tax and short term capital gains tax in the Budget for 2024-25, heavy foreign fund outflows and profit-taking after a record rally also impacted markets' sentiment negatively during the initial trade.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 671 points to 79,477.83. The NSE Nifty tumbled 202.7 points to 24,210.80. From the Sensex pack, Axis Bank declined nearly 6 per cent after the company's June quarter earnings failed to cheer investors.

JSW Steel, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, Power Grid, UltraTech Cement and Titan were the other laggards. Tata Motors, Larsen & Toubro, HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the gainers. In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong were trading lower.

The US markets ended significantly lower on Wednesday. "Global cues have turned distinctly negative with a sharp 3.64 per cent cut in Nasdaq, which is the worst cut in 2024. The tech stocks which have been driving the rally in the US are facing the brunt of selling due to worse-than-expected results and news.

"In India, too, the sentiments have turned a bit negative on the Budget proposals to raise the capital gains tax," said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 5,130.90 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data. Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.76 per cent to USD 81.09 a barrel.

The BSE benchmark declined 280.16 points or 0.35 per cent to settle at 80,148.88 on Wednesday. The NSE Nifty dropped 65.55 points or 0.27 per cent to 24,413.50.