Heavyweight Reliance Industries touched a record high and helped Indian shares rise on Thursday, with risk appetite being upbeat in the near term as investors bought stocks across the board amid concerns about sky-high inflation.
The NSE Nifty 50 index was up 0.66% at 17,249.60, as of 0440 GMT, while the S&P BSE Sensex added 0.69% to 57,435.77. Both the indexes rose sharply in the previous session as beaten-down technology stocks rebounded and Reliance Industries advanced.
Despite the recent jumps, the indexes are still down more than 1% in April so far, hurt by concerns around the Ukraine crisis, surging inflation and a rout in technology stocks after weak earnings from Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys.
On Thursday, all major Nifty sub-indexes rose, with Nifty's small-cap index adding 1.25% and the mid-cap index rising 0.9%.
Reliance rose for a third session and was among the top three gainers on the Nifty 50 index, up as much as 2.15%.
Morgan Stanley raised its target price on the conglomerate's stock to 3,253 rupees ($42.61) from 2,926 rupees and said it expects up to a 10% boost to the company's net asset value in anticipation of quicker hydrogen monetization.
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance has in the past year unveiled plans to reduce dependence on its mainstay oil-to-chemicals business and invested in clean energy projects.
Gains in Reliance pushed Nifty's energy sub-index 1.1% higher.
Three-wheeler maker Atul Auto surged 15.8% to a three-month high after saying its unit will partner with Valeo and Honda Power Pack Energy India for electric vehicles with battery swapping solution.
IT services provider HCL Technologies and food and beverage company Nestle India, however, fell 0.3% and 1.5%, respectively, ahead of their quarterly results.
