Nifty, Sensex end higher as banks, state-run firms gain

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Indian shares ended higher on Monday, as banks gained after top lender HDFC Bank reported a rise in quarterly profit and state-run firms rose after a report said the government had asked some of them to consider share buybacks.

The NSE Nifty 50 index closed up 0.94% at 11,873.05, while the S&P BSE Sensex ended 1.12% higher at 40,431.6.

Bank stocks led gains in the Nifty 50, with ICICI Bank shares adding 5.3% and Axis Bank ending 4.4% higher, helping the Nifty Bank Index close 3.1% higher.

Top private-sector lender HDFC Bank ended 0.35% higher after reporting an 18.4% rise in quarterly profit on Saturday.

Bank of Maharashtra hit a one-month high after the state-run lender reported a 13.4% jump in quarterly net profit, helped by a drop in bad loan provisions.

The Nifty Public Sector Enterprise sub-index ended 2.3% higher after Reuters reported the government had asked at least eight state-run companies to consider share buybacks in the current fiscal year.

Shares of Coal India and top power utility NTPC added 3% and 1.7%, respectively.

Oil-to-telecoms conglomerate Reliance Industries ended flat after having surged as much as 2.4% in morning trade.

Gains in Asian and European stocks aided sentiment, as they rallied on hopes of a U.S. stimulus package before the presidential election in November and expectations of a COVID-19 vaccine by year-end.

(Reporting by Philip George in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)