RIYADH: Indian shares closed near a seven-week high on Thursday, led by gains in metals and auto stocks, while strong results from IndusInd Bank lifted private lenders.
The NSE Nifty 50 index and the S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.51 percent each to close at 16,605.25 and 55,681.95, respectively. Both the indexes closed at their highest since early June.
The Nifty 50 index has risen about 5 percent so far this month. The Bank Nifty index and the Nifty Auto index are up 8 percent and 7.4 percent, respectively.
IndusInd Bank jumped 7.8 percent after it reported a surge in first-quarter net profit on Wednesday on the back of a drop in provisions and growth in net interest income.
Tata Communications surged 10 percent after the company posted a jump in quarterly profit.
RBI reschedules next policy meet to Aug 3-5
India's central bank, also known as the Reserve Bank of India, said on Thursday that it will reschedule its next monetary policy meeting to Aug. 3-5 from Aug. 2-4, due to "administrative exigencies", according to a Reuters report.
Citi expects revenue from India corporate business to grow 10%
Citigroup expects annual growth in its corporate banking business in India to accelerate to 10 percent in the next few years as it focuses on its institutional business after recently selling its consumer banking business, a top executive said.
“Conservatively, we expect India corporate banking business revenue to grow at around 10 percent a year in dollar terms in the next three-four years, which translates to 16-17 percent in rupee terms considering the depreciation,” K Balasubramanian, head of corporate banking, South Asia, told Reuters on Thursday, noting Citi has been ramping up hiring.
Growth of 10 percent would be “200 basis points” higher than annual growth seen in the last few years and faster than several other countries in which the bank has a presence, he added.
(With input from Reuters)
