BENGALURU, Nov 16 (Reuters) -
Information technology (IT) stocks lifted Indian blue-chip indexes after a weak start on Thursday, though a drop in metals after a four-day rally and a fall in non-banking lender Bajaj Finance capped gains.
The NSE Nifty 50 index was up 0.23% at 19,721.20 as of 10:20 a.m. IST, while the S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.24% to 65,837.58.
Information technology (IT), which jumped 2.59% in the previous session, extended gains to add 0.75%, still helped by an improved rate outlook in the U.S. IT companies earn a significant share of their revenue from the U.S.
Tata Consultancy Services added as much as 1.25% and was among the top Nifty 50 gainers. The country's top software company fixed record date as Nov. 25 for its 170 billion rupees share buyback plan, post market hours on Wednesday.
"We expect the market to maintain its momentum, driven by positive domestic data, cooling off US bond yields and dollar index," said Siddhartha Khemka, head - retail research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services.
Metals, however, fell 0.5%, on course to snap a four-session winning streak. The index added 2.92% over the period.
Among individual stocks, Bajaj Finance shed as much as 4.06%, most intraday percentage loss in nearly eight months, after India's central bank barred the company from issuing loans under two products.
Oil & Gas stocks gained 0.8%, after Brent crude prices fell to near $80 per barrel due to concerns of high supply and weak demand.
A fall in oil prices is positive for importers of the commodity like India and its oil marketing companies. Bharat Petroleum Corp was among the top Nifty 50 gainers.
The more domestic-focussed small- and mid-caps rose 0.5% and 0.35%, respectively, outperforming the blue-chips. (Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K and Nivedita Bhattacharjee)
