Bank stocks, US elections help indices march on towards all-time high

There was no stopping the indices this week. A rally in banking stocks, the US election results, and signs of revival in the domestic economy helped markets post a weekly advance over 5 per cent, the biggest since June.

The trend continued on Friday as well, with the benchmark indices rising over a per cent to end within striking distance of a new all-time high. The Sensex gained 553 points, or 1.3 per cent, to end at 41,893 — just 52 points shy of the previous record of 41,945 seen on January 17. The Nifty rose 143 points, or 1.2 per