IGI Logo

 Indian shares surged more than 1% to three-week highs on Tuesday, as rate hikes fears were soothed after the country's central bank said inflation looked set to ease and as risk sentiment improved globally on Britain's fiscal policy U-turn.

The NSE Nifty 50 index rose 1.07% to 17,496.75 as of 0510 GMT and the S&P BSE Sensex advanced 1.09% to 59,045.57, set to add to two straight sessions of gains.

"We have to keep an eye on oil prices, but otherwise with respect to domestic inflation, we have had a decent monsoon, so don't expect any big spike in food prices," said Samrat Dasgupta, chief executive officer of Esquire Capital Investment Advisors.

"Maybe the worst of inflation is over, unless there is an oil shock because of the war in Ukraine."

India is the world's third-largest importer and consumer of oil, and a rise in crude prices tends to push the country's trade and current account deficit higher.

The upside in equities may be limited due to geopolitical conditions and U.S. rate hikes, but we don't expect much of a downside as the market has been consolidating for long, Dasgupta added.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should pause interest rate hikes, despite unacceptably high inflation, to avoid stalling a recovery in economic growth, monetary policy committee member Jayant Varma told Reuters in an interview on Monday.

Varma's comments came as the RBI, in its monthly bulletin on Monday, said the country's retail inflation was set to ease from the five-month high hit in September, while economic activity is poised to expand.

In domestic trading, Nifty's automobile, energy and public sector bank indexes were among the top gainers, climbing between 1.5% and 2.5%.

Network18 Media & Investments, the media unit of billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries, rose as much as 3.2% ahead of its quarterly earnings results later in the day.

Jindal Drilling and Industries Ltd jumped as much as 7% after the company reported a near nine-fold increase in September-quarter consolidated profit.