Indian shares rose on Thursday, tracking global equity markets that recovered after fears of a Sino-US trade war eased, with metal stocks such as Hindalco Industries Ltd and banks such as ICICI Bank Ltd among top gainers.
The United States expressed willingness to negotiate a resolution to the trade dispute with China after Beijing retaliated against proposed US tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese goods by targeting key American imports.
Asian shares bounced from two-month lows, with MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan up 0.6 per cent.
“All sectors which were impacted yesterday, including metals, are recovering today mainly because the fears of escalation in trade wars have receded, at least for the time-being,” said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at HDFC Securities.
The broader NSE index was up 1.34 per cent at 10,264.15 as of 0529 GMT, while the benchmark BSE index was 1.28 per cent higher at 33,442.73.
The Nifty metal index climbed as much as 4 per cent. Hindalco led gains on the NSE index, rising as much as 6.2 per cent, and was set to snap four sessions of losses.
Vedanta Ltd gained over 5 per cent, while Tata Steel Ltd was up as much as 3.8 per cent.
Banking stocks rose ahead of a monetary policy decision by the country’s central bank later in the day, where it is expected to hold interest rates steady.
“The possibilities of a negative or positive surprise in the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) policy are limited. Outlook on growth, inflation and the way RBI perceives the developments abroad will be important to watch out for,” Jasani said.
The Nifty bank index gained as much as 1.6 per cent, with State Bank of India and ICICI Bank Ltd up more than 2 per cent each, reports Reuters.