By Bharath Rajeswaran
(Reuters) -India’s stock benchmarks rose on Thursday, led by Infosys after some of its large shareholders and their affiliated entities decided to opt out of a 180-billion-rupee ($2.05 billion) share buyback.
Optimism over a potential earnings rebound and an Indian newspaper’s report of progress toward a trade agreement between India and the U.S. also supported sentiment.
The Nifty 50 rose 0.83% to 26,083, while BSE Sensex added 0.91% to 85,194.41, as of 10:08 a.m. IST, both trading less than 1% below their all-time highs hit in September 2024.
All 16 major sectors logged gains. The IT index advanced the most by 2.7% with Infosys leading the pack with 4.2% rise.
“The promoters’ decision to opt out of the buyback signals confidence in future prospects and improves the entitlement ratio for retail investors,” said Saurabh Jain, assistant vice president of retail equities at SMC Global.
The broader small-caps and mid-caps gained 0.2% and 0.6%, respectively.
Both Nifty 50 and Sensex have gained about 3% in previous five sessions, aided by stable earnings from banks and heavyweights such as Reliance Industries.
The optimism around India-U.S. trade deal is also boosting markets, said Devarsh Vakil, head of prime research at HDFC Securities.
The two countries are nearing an agreement that would reduce tariffs on Indian exports to 15%-16% from 50%, Mint reported on Wednesday.
Textile stocks surged on the news, with Gokaldas Exports, Vardhman Textiles, Welspun Living, KPR Mill, and Indo Count jumping between 5% and 10%.
“The trade deal could give Indian textile exporters a competitive edge over peers in Vietnam and Bangladesh, who face higher tariffs,” said ICICI Direct Research.
Shrimp exporters such as Avanti Feeds, Apex Frozen, and Coastal Corporation also rallied 5%–20% on expectations of the tariff cuts.
($1 = 87.8950 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Ronojoy Mazumdar and Harikrishnan Nair)
