Benchmark indices ended on a strong note with Nifty inched closer to its record high on Monday.

At close, the Sensex was up 611.90 points or 0.75% at 81,698.11, and the Nifty was up 187.45 points or 0.76% at 25,010.60. Both the indices climbed nearly 1% each.

Nifty 50 rose 0.90% to hit its intraday high of 25,043.80, just 35 points below its all-time high of 25,078.30.

Nifty50 extended its gains into the eighth consecutive session. During these eight sessions, the index has risen 3.6%.

Sensex closed with a gain of 612 points, or 0.75%, at 81,698.11.

The mid and smallcap indices also gained, but they underperformed the benchmark Sensex. BSE Midcap index closed 0.66% and the BSE Smallcap index ended 0.20% higher.

The overall market capitalisation of the firms listed on the BSE rose to a record Rs 462.3 lakh crore from nearly Rs 460 lakh crore in the previous session.

On Nifty50, shares of HCL Tech (4.24%), Hindalco (3.96%) and NTPC (3.22%) closed as the top gainers. Shares of Apollo Hospitals (1.18%), Hero MotoCorp (0.74%) and Adani Ports (0.69%) closed as the top losers.

Among the sectors, all indices ended with gains except Nifty PSU Bank (down 0.50%) and Media (down 0.22%).

Nifty Metal index ended as the top gainer with a gain of 2.16%. Nifty Realty (1.76%), IT (1.39%), Consumer Durables (1.30%) and Oil & Gas (1.16%) also closed with significant gains.

Nifty IT was among the top gainers in the sectoral indices, rising 1.77% led by HCL Tech, Persistent Systems, Tech Mahindra and other stocks. The index tracks the performance of India’s top IT companies and the sector as a whole.

Shares of Transport Corporation fell over 6% due to profit booking after the stock hit an all-time high on Thursday.

Shares of Mamaearth, The Derma Co, and Blunt parent surged around 14% to hit an all-time high.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) appear to be turning bearish on India’s National Stock Exchange, as data showed that the foreign investors have been net sellers.

Foreign investors have sold NSE shares worth Rs 3,500 crore in June and July. FPIs have now been net sellers of NSE shares for six straight months, with the last instance of net FPI buying seen in January.