The Sensex on Friday raced past the 47000-mark for the first time but retreated from this milestone because of profit taking.

Analysts said stocks could continue their winning run but with reduced speed as portfolio flows are showing some moderation because of the holidays.

The benchmark index, however, rebounded during fag-end trading to finish at a record 46960.69, up 70.35 points, or 0.15 per cent.

It has taken the Sensex only seven sessions to rise 1000 points. These gains have come primarily on account of persistent FPI inflows as global liquidity remains abundant with central banks following a loose monetary policy and investors now preferring riskier assets.

Moreover, the sentiment has been buoyant over the arrival of the Covid-19 vaccine and expectations of a sharp global economic recovery.

Stock prices have, therefore, ignored the current state of the economy. Moreover, the better-than-expected corporate earnings for the second quarter have only strengthened expectations of recovery gathering steam in the next few months.

Eyes on FPIs

Amid these conditions, experts feel that the current bull run will continue, though there could be intermittent consolidation. Here, the focus of attention is whether the FPI will continue with their robust investments. So far during this calendar year, they have put in more than $21 billion into stocks with the highest number coming in last month. It is, however, felt that inflows could show some moderation in the next few days and pick up next year.

“FII flows though strong have moderated some bit from the previous week. The average daily FII flows in the first four days of the week was Rs 3,200 crore. Going forward, we expect FII flows to slow down in the next two weeks as we head towards Christmas vacation.

“Markets could turn volatile next week because of the monthly expiry and lesser participation from FIIs. We expect Nifty-50 to consolidate between 13000 and 14000 levels till the end of this month,” Rusmik Oza, executive vice-president, head of fundamental research at Kotak Securities, said.

In Friday’s trade, the Sensex opened above the 47000-mark at 47026.02 — a new lifetime intra-day high. This was on optimism of a US stimulus package.

However, profit booking in financial stocks saw the gauge touching a low of 46630.31. It later rose to finish at a record 46960.69, up 70.35 points or 0.15 per cent.

The broader NSE Nifty rose 19.85 points or 0.14 per cent to 13760.55 -- its new closing record.

IT stocks were in focus as better-than-expected results from Accenture Plc enthused investors. Infosys was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, jumping 2.64 per cent, followed by Bajaj Auto, SBI, ICICI Bank, HCL Tech and Titan, Asian Paints and TCS.

But IndusInd Bank, ONGC, HDFC Bank, Maruti, Bajaj Finserv and Bharti Airtel were among the main losers, falling up to 3.30 per cent.

During the week, the Sensex has rallied 861.68 points or 1.86 per cent, while the Nifty surged 246.70 points or 1.82 per cent.