Indian shares reverse course, tread higher as metals gain

BENGALURU, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Indian shares reversed early losses to edge higher on Wednesday, as gains in metal stocks led by Hindalco helped offset a slump in Axis Bank following a contraction in the lender's quarterly margins.

The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 rose 0.6% to 21,371 points and the S&P BSE Sensex was up 0.62% at 70,815, as of 11:00 am.

The indexes saw a steep sell-off in the final hours of the previous session weighed down by financial stocks.

The Nifty metal index rose 1.7% on Wednesday, led by a 4.4% jump in aluminium producer Hindalco Industries.

Helping the mood was optimism that China, the biggest metals consumer, will offer support for its stock markets after a recent onslaught. Aluminium prices were also higher as traders assessed the risks of potential European Union sanctions on the metal from Russia.

Hindustan Copper, SAIL, National Aluminium and NMDC gained more than 3% each.

Meanwhile, private lender Axis Bank slumped as much as 6.3% to a near two-month low after reporting a contraction in margins for the third quarter. The stock was last trading down 2.9%.

Top private lender HDFC Bank, which declined in early trade to take its losses post disappointing earnings last week to nearly 18%, reversed course to trade up 1%.

Blue-chip firms Bajaj Auto, Tech Mahindra , Tata Steel and Indian Oil were up between 0.8% and 1.7% ahead of their quarterly results.