Indian shares scale 11-week peak

Indian shares rose for a third straight day on Monday, enthused by forecasts of better rains, while the rupee appreciated on back of a weaker dollar and expectations of inflows towards a high-profile share offering.
The 30-share Bombay index rose 0.62 percent to 5,202.53 points, its best close since May 13, the day of the shock national election victory for the leftist-backed Congress-led coalition which triggered a deep stock market slump.
A senior weather official told Reuters on Monday that India's largely dry north-west region was likely to receive increased rainfall in the next few days as the monsoon picks up in most parts of the country.
"There seems to be some good news on the monsoon front," said Hemang Raja, chief executive officer at local brokerage IL&FS Investsmart, though he added that high crude oil prices would overshadow the positive sentiment brought by more rain.
Vehicle makers were broadly lifted by news of strong vehicle sales in July, which is traditionally a low-demand period.
Hero Honda Motors Ltd, India's biggest motorcycle maker, gained 2.1 percent after it said July bike sales jumped 44 percent from a year ago. Rival Bajaj Auto Ltd, the No. 2, rose 3.7 percent after its July sales climbed 32 percent.
Cement stocks gained on expectations of strong shipments in July, with cement makers set to release shipment data this week.
Associated Cement Companies Ltd, the No. 2 producer by capacity, and Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd, the third-biggest, both gained 1.7 percent.
Expectations of foreign investment in the well-bid initial public offering of Tata Consultancy Services shares also boosted sentiment, though concerns over a recent slowing in broader capital inflows continued to weigh.
The rupee had risen for a second straight day, and is well above Friday's 13-month low of 46.52 rupees per dollar. It had fallen 0.5 percent in the preceding two days on heavy corporate demand for dollars and thin capital inflows.
Federal bonds slid on worries that a near-3-month rising trend in inflation could continue as global crude oil prices hit new highs. The benchmark 10-year federal bond yield was quoted at 6.2293 percent, against 6.1545 percent on Saturday.
Indian wholesale price inflation was 6.52 percent for the year to July 17, unchanged from the week before but up from 4.2 percent in early May. However, the government's chief economic adviser, Ashok Lahiri, insisted inflation had stabilised.