The Sensex rallied over 320 points while the broader Nifty ended at its fresh lifetime high on Thursday as investors poured money into infrastructure, banking and energy stocks amid strong global cues. The 30-share BSE Sensex ended 320.62 points, or 0.78 per cent, higher at 41626.64.

The NSE Nifty closed 99.70 points, or 0.82 per cent, up at 12282.20 — its new closing record.

The rupee, however, lost 16 paise to close at 71.38 against the dollar on Thursday as a steady rise in crude oil prices and stronger dollar against key global currencies weighed on the sentiment.

Sentiment remained bullish for the second straight day after PMI data showed that the country’s manufacturing sector activity improved in December, driven by new orders that rose at the fastest pace since July, traders said.

GST collections remaining above the Rs 1 lakh crore-mark in December indicated that consumption recovery has taken hold, they added.

Moreover, the global markets were buoyed by the Chinese central bank’s fresh stimulus for the country’s slowing economy.

“The government’s more than double capex plan for the next five years and uptick in steel prices with the announcement of the US-China deal signing date pushed the market higher led by sectors such as infra, commercial vehicles, cement and metals,” said Vinod Nair, head of research, Geojit Financial Services.