By Bharath Rajeswaran
BENGALURU (Reuters) -Indian shares advanced on Wednesday, led by information technology (IT) stocks, after dovish commentary from a U.S. Federal Reserve official elevated bets of rate cuts by as early as March 2024.
The NSE Nifty 50 index rose 0.60% to 20,008.45 points, reclaiming the 20,000 mark for the first time since Sept. 20, 2023. The S&P BSE Sensex was up 0.59% at 66,560.50, as of 10:10 a.m. IST.
IT companies, which earn a significant share of their revenue from the U.S., rose 1.5% after Fed Governor Christopher Waller flagged the possibility of lowering the interest rate in the months ahead if inflation continued to come down.
The odds of a 25 basis-point rate cut by March 2024 rose to 40.4% on Wednesday from 21.5% the day before, according to the FedWatch tool.
“Sentiment continues to be positive for Indian equities,” said Anita Gandhi, founder and head of institution, Arihant Capital, citing the easing global rate outlook, return of foreign inflows and the recovery in rural demand.
Foreign portfolio investors have turned net buyers of Indian equities after two months, adding shares worth 29.01 billion rupees, as of Nov. 28.
“The updates from the Supreme Court hearing on the Adani conglomerate have also given a boost to Adani stocks, aiding positive sentiment,” Gandhi added.
Adani group stocks rose between 0.4% and 17% on the day, extending the rally from Tuesday’s session.
Zomato jumped 4% after about 8.66 million shares of the food delivery company changed hands in 12 blocks as of 9:47 a.m. IST, according to LSEG data.
China’s Alipay launched a $400 million accelerated book build to sell its entire 3.44% stake in Zomato, according to the deal’s term sheet.
Aster DM Healthcare jumped 11% after agreeing to sell a majority stake in its Gulf business to Alpha GCC Holdings for $1.01 billion.
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman and Sonia Cheema)
Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Reuters news service. ThePrint holds no responsibilty for its content.