Indian shares rise ahead of cenbank decision
Updates at 9:44 a.m. IST
By Bharath Rajeswaran
Oct 9 (Reuters) -Indian shares rose on Wednesday, led by information technology and pharma stocks, ahead of the monetary policy decision amid expectations the central bank will continue to hold interest rates.
The Nifty 50 index .NSEI was up 0.25% at 25,073 points as of 9:44 a.m. IST, while the S&P BSE Sensex .BSESN added 0.18% to 81,778.84.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is expected to keep the key policy rates unchanged for a tenth consecutive meeting as it aims to keep inflation at target, but the central bank's hawkish 'withdrawal of accommodation' policy stance and comments will be under scrutiny.
The policy decision is due at 10:00 a.m. IST.
Any dovish commentary on the economy or rates will aid momentum in domestic equities, especially in rate-sensitive sectors such as real estate, auto and banking, analysts said.
India's benchmark indexes snapped a six-session losing streak on Tuesday, as investors bought the dip, while better-than-expected results for the ruling party in a state assembly election also supported sentiment.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's victory in Haryana has come as a confidence booster for markets, VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services said.
"The sentiments will get a further lift if the RBI decides to change stance to neutral and sound a bit dovish today."
Eleven of the 13 major sectors rose and the broader, more domestically-focussed small- .NIFSMP100 and mid-caps .NIFMDCP100 gained about 1% each.
The IT index .NIFTYIT rose 0.7%, extending gains for the fourth session in a row, after labour market data eased concerns of recession in the U.S., a key source of revenue for the sector.
The pharma index .NIPHARM added 1.3%, led by a 5% rise in Divi's Laboratories DIVI.NS after Citi initiated coverage of the drugmaker's stock with a "buy" rating.
Torrent Power TOPO.NS jumped 8% after securing two orders from Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company for building a total of 2000 MW energy storage capacity.
Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Eileen Soreng and Mrigank Dhaniwala
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