BENGALURU, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Indian shares rose on Wednesday, boosted by energy, public sector banks and telecom stocks, while investors globally were on edge as they weighed volatile oil markets after the United States and other nations moved to cool prices.
By 0503 GMT, the blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index rose 0.37% to 17,568.65, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex climbed 0.33% to 58,859.78.
The Nifty Energy Index rose as much as 1.45%. Oil prices were in focus after India said it will sell 5 million barrels to Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd and Hindustan Petroleum Corp.
Shares of these two companies were up 2.35% and 1.32% respectively, while state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation was the top gainer on the sub-index, rising as much as 5.32%.
"While there is some easing of crude prices, rising COVID-19 cases is still a worry globally, leading to mixed cues overall," said Ajit Mishra, VP research at Religare Broking.
Among domestic factors, he said that continued outflows from foreign investors and underperformance by some sectors will weigh on markets, while the approaching monthly derivatives expiry will keep volatility high.
The Nifty PSU Bank Index climbed to 1.74%. Central Bank of India and Indian Overseas Bank hit near one-month highs, surging 15%-17.7%, after a report said India planned to privatise the banks.
Telecom major Bharti Airtel soared 3.02% to hit a record high, while Vodafone Idea climbed 5.19% to a more than one-month high following tariff-hike announcements.
Separately, Moody's Investors Service revised on Tuesday its ratings outlook of Bharti Airtel to "positive" from "stable" on improving operating performance.
In broader Asian markets, shares were jittery as trading was buffeted by a step-up in U.S. Treasury yields and volatile oil prices, with investors looking ahead to minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve's November meeting later in the day.
Reporting by Vishwadha Chander in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh.V
Source: Reuters