New Delhi, July 9 -- Oil and gas stocks rallied on Thursday despite a sharp rise in global crude oil prices. The gains pushed the Nifty Oil & Gas index up nearly 1%.

Mahanagar Gas shares emerged as the top performer on the Nifty Oil & Gas index, rallying nearly 3%. It was followed by Petronet LNG, Reliance Industries, Indraprastha Gas, GAIL (India), Adani Total Gas, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL), and Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), with each stock gaining more than 1%.

The rally in oil and gas shares came even as crude oil prices climbed sharply in the international market after fresh US strikes on Iran dampened hopes of a full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz - a critical maritime route through which around one-fifth of ...