BENGALURU, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Indian shares hit record highs on Tuesday, buoyed by technology and consumer stocks, as economic indicators pointed to a demand recovery, although the gains were capped by worries about surging Delta variant cases elsewhere in Asia. By 0501 GMT, the blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index climbed 0.53% to 15,970 and the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.65% to 53,293.11. The country’s factory activity bounced back last month and July trade deficit widened to $11.23 billion from $9.4 billion a month ago, with economists pointing out normalisation of activity after curbs were eased. “India-specific things continue to be strong, with industrial production data and manufacturing purchasing managers Index positive for July,” Anita Gandhi, wholetime director at Arihant Capital Markets, said, adding that unlocking of restrictions is also a positive factor. “However, in banking, the credit offtake is still not that great and collection efficiency and non-performing asset pressure continues to be there.” Private-sector lender RBL Bank reported a quarterly loss after its COVID-19 provisions jumped, sending its shares 2.7% lower. The Nifty IT index climbed 0.8%, while the fast moving consumer goods sub-index rose 1%. But, the spread of the Delta coronavirus variant in key Asian regions posed new risks and put Chinese authorities on high alert, rattling investor confidence. “Globally, the volatility has increased and the new variant of COVID-19 is causing trouble. Even though India cues are positive, we also get impacted to some extent by global,” Gandhi said. In Asia, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.12%. Meanwhile, Indian e-commerce beauty company Nykaa plans to raise $500 million through its initial public offering (IPO), a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters, becoming the latest homegrown startup to pursue a listing on the domestic bourses. (Reporting by Nallur Sethuraman in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh.V) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.