By Bharath Rajeswaran and Vivek Kumar M
(Reuters) -India’s equity benchmarks rose for a third straight session on Wednesday, lifted by IT stocks on optimism over U.S. trade talks and expectations of a Federal Reserve rate cut next month, while a steady rise in Reliance Industries also lent support.
Analysts said sentiment was also boosted by Bihar state exit polls predicting a win for the ruling alliance that includes Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party.
The Nifty 50 rose 0.7% to 25,875.8, while the BSE Sensex added 0.71% to 84,466.51. The indexes have gained 1.5% so far this week.
Of the 16 major sectors, 15 advanced. The broader small-caps and mid-caps rose 0.8% each.
“Sentiments have turned for the better with news of an India-U.S. trade deal getting finalised soon and the exit polls indicating a decisive victory for the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) in Bihar,” said VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments.
Analysts said the NDA’s projected victory reinforces expectations of policy continuity and government stability.
IT stocks , which earn a large share of revenue from the U.S., rose 2%, taking their three-session rise to 5%, supported by growing bets for a December Fed rate cut and hopes that the U.S. government shutdown will soon end.
Reliance Industries jumped 1.2%, extending its three-session rise to 2.3%.
Pharma companies, which also count U.S. as a key revenue geography, gained 1% on the day.
Biocon jumped 5.4% on reporting profit in September quarter compared to a loss in the year-ago quarter.
Among individual stocks, Adani Enterprises gained 5% after setting its rights issue price at 1,800 rupees per share for a 249.3 billion-rupee ($2.84 billion) fundraise.
Broker Groww’s parent, Billionbrains Garage Ventures, jumped 31.3% on its debut trade.
Meanwhile, investors awaited India’s October inflation reading, which is expected to have fallen to a 10-year low, driven by easing food prices, per a Reuters poll.
($1 = 87.8950 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy and Mrigank Dhaniwala)
