BENGALURU (Reuters) - Indian shares rose on Monday, led by auto stocks as monthly data showed a recovery in July sales after a second wave of COVID-19 cases had dented demand, while a pick-up in fuel demand lifted energy companies.
By 0452 GMT, the blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index climbed 0.6% to 15,857 and the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.56% to 52,879.31.
“The derivative pressure that was there last week is gone and (corporate) results show that except for banking, growth is maintained and margins are good. That’s something the market is liking very much,” said AK Prabhakar, head of research at IDBI Capital in Mumbai.
“Maruti (July) sales are good ... Two-wheeler exports have been very good, which needs to be looked at. If the unlocking plays out well, Maruti and export-oriented two-wheeler stocks should really do good,” Prabhakar said.
India’s top car maker Maruti Ltd reported a 50% jump in July sales on Sunday, compared with a year ago, while Jaguar Land Rover parent Tata Motors Ltd posted a 92% surge in total domestic sales.
Bajaj Auto Ltd said on Monday its July sales jumped 44% against a year ago, with exports surging 108%. Eicher Motors posted a 97% jump in exports. [FWN2P706N]
The Nifty auto index rose 1%, led by more than 1%-2% gains in Maruti and Tata Motors, Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, Eicher, and Ashok Leyland
Meanwhile, India’s energy index added 0.9% after preliminary sales data showed that the country’s daily gasoline consumption exceeded pre-pandemic levels in June as states relaxed COVID-19-related lockdowns.
Oil marketing companies Indian Oil Corp, Hindustan Petroleum Corp and Bharat Petroleum Corp rose between 1.2% and 1.7%.
In broader markets, Asian shares were trying to stabilize, though Beijing’s regulatory crackdown continued to reverberate amid disappointing economic news.
Reporting by Nallur Sethuraman in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh.V
Source: Reuters