India: Shares end higher; markets await RBI policy decision

[BENGALURU] Indian shares closed higher on Thursday for a fourth straight session, buoyed mostly by gains in Airtel and information technology stocks, while investors awaited the country's central bank decision on interest rates on Friday.

The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index and the S&P BSE Sensex ended up 0.2 per cent each at 16,294.60 and 54,492.84, respectively.

The Nifty Bank index - which rose over 2.3 per cent in the previous session - declined 0.5 per cent, while the public sector banking index dropped 2.2 per cent. The Nifty IT index rose 0.7 per cent.

"We have observed a lacklustre movement after two days of positivity in the market. Sentiments in the domestic market are still intact and poised towards positive strength," said Gaurav Garg, head of research, CapitalVia Global Research.

Bharti Airtel Ltd was the top gainer in the Nifty 50 index, rising 4.23 per cent after several brokerages gave a "buy" rating on the stock after its quarterly results.

Indian wireless carrier Vodafone Idea's shares tumbled as much as 24 per cent to their lowest level since May 2020 at 4.55 rupees, a day after its billionaire non-executive chairman stepped down, fuelling concerns. Vodafone Idea, however, pulled back to close unchanged.

Shares of Indian state-run refiner Hindustan Petroleum Corp fell as much as 3.6 per cent, a day after it reported a 36.2 per cent fall in June-quarter net profit.

Panacea Biotec gained 3 per cent after the company reported that it had agreed to produce up to 25 million doses of the Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine using the drug substance made by Russia's Generium.

Indian markets are closely watching the country's central bank policy outcome on Friday for cues on liquidity even as it is mostly expected to stay put on rates.

REUTERS