By Bharath Rajeswaran
Indian shares rose on Monday, led by auto makers such as Maruti Suzuki and Hero MotoCorp on upbeat monthly sales, while easing oil prices after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would start helping free ships stranded in the Gulf lent some support.
The Nifty 50 NSE:NIFTY added 1.15% to 24,272.50 and the BSE Sensex BSE:SENSEX gained 1.21% to 77,843.72 as of 9:46 a.m. IST.
All 16 major sectors advanced in morning trade.
Auto index NSE:CNXAUTO rose 2%, leading sectoral gains. Hero MotoCorp NSE:HEROMOTOCO and Maruti Suzuki NSE:MARUTI gained 2.3% and 4%, respectively, on upbeat monthly sales data.
Bajaj Auto NSE:BAJAJ_AUTO jumped 4.8% to an 18-month high after it reported a 40% year-on-year surge in April sales.
The broader small-caps NSE:CNXSMALLCAP and mid-caps NSE:CNXMIDCAP rose 1% each.
Both the Nifty and the Sensex fell about 0.7% on Thursday, while the rupee hit a record low after crude oil prices jumped on fears of an escalation in the Iran war.
Those worries have eased a bit after U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States would begin an effort to free up ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude, which jumped to a four-year high of $126.41 a barrel last week, has eased to about $109.
"While there could be a significant delay in finding a full-fledged solution to the Iran war, resumption of major attacks between the U.S. and Iran looks more unlikely, lending stability to markets," said G Chokkalingam, founder and head of research at Equinomics Research.
Among stocks, Hindustan Unilever NSE:HINDUNILVR gained 3.7% after it reported a March-quarter profit rise on a boost from consumption tax cuts.
Equitas Small Finance Bank NSE:EQUITASBNK climbed 9.6% after a March-quarter profit jump.
NCC NSE:NCC gained 2% after securing four orders worth 17.03 billion rupees in April.
Kotak Mahindra Bank NSE:KOTAKBANK fell 2.7%, with multiple brokerages flagging a weaker margin outlook due to rising deposit costs in fiscal year 2027.