Indian shares end at record highs on Airtel, banks boost

BENGALURU: Indian shares ended at record highs on Monday, led by gains in telecom firm Bharti Airtel and bank stocks, with sentiment also supported by cautious US Federal Reserve signals on winding down stimulus.

The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index ended 1.35% higher to 16,931.05, its sixth straight session of gains, and the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex rose 1.36% to 56,889.76. Both indexes clocked their best session in nearly a month.

The Nifty had 38 record closing highs, while the Sensex marked 35 fresh closing peaks this year as of Monday's close, according to Refinitiv data.

Bharti Airtel was the top gainer on the Nifty, closing 4.3% higher on its best day in more than a month, on plans to raise up to 210 billion rupees ($2.87 billion) through a share sale. The company is gearing up to launch 5G services in India.

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The Nifty bank index rose 2.02%, with State Bank of India and Axis Bank Ltd gaining between 2.5%-4.2%.

Investors are also looking ahead to the GDP print due at 1200 GMT on Tuesday. The country's economic growth likely touched a record high in the quarter through June, reflecting a very weak base last year and a rebound in consumer spending, according to a Reuters poll published last week.

Global stocks hovered near record peaks after US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Friday that the tapering of stimulus measures could begin this year, but that the central bank would remain cautious.

Shares of Indian auto parts suppliers rose as much as 14% following a report electric-vehicle maker Tesla Inc was in talks with at least three companies to source critical parts for its planned entry into the country.

Automobile maker Maruti Suzuki India Ltd closed 2.6% higher after it said it would raise prices across models from next month.