Indian shares edge higher as auto, IT stocks advance

BENGALURU (Reuters) – Indian shares rose slightly on Friday, adding to their third straight monthly gain, as Ashok Leyland and TVS Motor led auto stocks higher while Tech Mahindra lifted IT scrips on strong earnings.

By 0504 GMT, the blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index climbed 0.16% to 15,802.2 and the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.11% to 52,708, shrugging off weakness in Asian shares which were set for their worst month since March 2020.

“It’s been almost two months now that we are seeing the indexes hover in a range, and we continue to be in that range, especially for the Nifty,” said Ajit Mishra, vice president of research at Religare Broking.

The banking sector’s underperformance is still a concern, but mid- and small-cap metal companies are gaining traction and there could be some respite in pharma stocks, he said.

The Nifty auto index rose 2.05%, with Ashok Leyland jumping as much as 9.8% after it said U.S. auto parts maker Dana would make a strategic investment in its electric vehicle unit.

TVS Motor Company rose as much as 7.6% after the two-wheeler maker posted a quarterly profit compared to a year-ago loss.

Tech Mahindra jumped as much as 9.3% to a record and was the top Nifty gainer, after it reported a 39% growth in consolidated quarterly profit. The overall Nifty IT index was up 1.37%.

Key companies reporting quarterly results on Friday include Indian Oil Corp, Bandhan Bank, JSW Energy, Bharat Heavy Electricals, Marico and Britannia Industries.

Asian shares slipped, with a gauge of regional equities set for its biggest monthly drop since the height of global pandemic lockdowns last March, while the dollar lagged near one-month lows on expectations of continued Fed stimulus.

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