Sensex rises; ICICI Bank, oil marketers gain

Indian shares edged up on Tuesday, aided by a surge in ICICI Bank on hopes of improvement in the private-sector lender’s asset quality after it announced March-quarter results post market hours on Monday.

ICICI Bank rose as much as 7.57 percent and was the biggest gainer on the broader NSE index. Brokerages retained their ‘buy’ rating on the stock citing a significant decline in the “drilldown” list of potential troubled loans.

The bank’s net profit almost halved to 10.20 billion rupees for the quarter ended March 31.

Analysts say the markets could see some correction before the outcome of elections in the southern state of Karnataka.

“There could be some correction before the election results are known. I expect NSE to be range-bound between 10,500 – 10,800,” said AK Prabhakar, head of research at IDBI Capital.

“However, the market is generally positive and there could be gains in oil marketing companies due to the possibility of fuel prices being hiked after the Karnataka elections.”

Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd were up 1.35 percent and 2.29 percent respectively.

Benchmark Brent crude retreated from 3-1/2 year highs as investors awaited an announcement by President Donald Trump on whether the U.S. will reimpose sanctions on Iran.

The broader NSE Nifty was up 0.21 percent at 10,738.4 as of 0609 GMT, while the benchmark BSE Sensex was 0.27 percent higher at 35,301.6.

Tata Steel Ltd extended Monday’s gains, rising as much 1.3 percent. Macquarie sees domestic steel prices remaining on an uptrend with further hikes this month.

Among the decliners, PNB Housing Finance Ltd fell 7.3 percent after private equity firm Carlyle Group LP’s unit sold 8 million shares at a floor price which was a 6.9 percent discount to the stock’s Monday close.