INDIA STOCKS-Indian shares advance on bargain buying after recent slide

By Bharath Rajeswaran and Vivek Kumar M

Sept 21 (Reuters) - Indian shares edged higher on Monday, aided by bargain-buying following recent losses, while elevated crude prices and heightened primary market activity limited the gains.

India's Nifty 50 .NSEI rose 0.29% to 23,414.30 and the BSE Sensex .BSESN added 0.76% to 74,858.99. They were up 0.35% and 0.81% ahead of the closing auction.

Nifty and Sensex have fallen for six straight weeks, their longest losing streak in six years.

US President Donald Trump warned Tehran of economic collapse or leadership change unless it reaches a deal, while Iran's military vowed a harsh response to any new attack.

Still, oil prices fell to their lowest in 11 days as investors bet this week's UN meeting could yield diplomatic progress, while a partial recovery in Saudi shipments offset supply concerns from continued Houthi attacks.O/R

"Lower crude prices, Moody's revised domestic growth forecast and the recent market slide are drawing buyers into heavyweight stocks, boosting benchmarks," said Aishvarya Dadheech, founder and chief investment officer at Fident Asset Management.

"However, lingering Middle East uncertainty and tighter global monetary policy will ensure that caution prevails in the near term," said Dadheech.

The National Stock Exchange of India's $2.3 billion IPO closes later on Monday after being fully subscribed on Friday.

Twelve of the 16 major sectors advanced. The broader small-caps .NIFSMCP100 and mid-caps .NIFMDCP100 fell 0.1% and 0.3%.

HDFC Bank HDBK.NS and ICICI Bank ICBK.NS rose about 1.2% and 0.5%, while Reliance Industries RELI.NS added 1.7%. All three carry large weights on the benchmarks.

Among stocks, Welspun Corp WGSR.NS gained 3.9% after its unit, East Pipes Integrated Company, won an order from Saudi Aramco 2223.SE worth about $209 million.

Logistics firm Leap India LEAN.NS rose 3.9% after UBS started coverage with "buy," terming it a play on modernisation of the country's supply chain.

Indian Hotels IHTL.NS rose 1.7% after Morgan Stanley upgraded the shares to "overweight" from "equal-weight", citing a resilient earnings outlook.