(Updates for morning trade)

By Vivek Kumar M

Aug 25 (Reuters) - Indian shares rose in early trade on

Monday, driven by gains in information technology stocks after

the U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell hinted at an

interest rate cut next month.

The Nifty 50 and the BSE Sensex both rose

0.3% to 24,955.05 and 81,571.03 points, respectively, as of 9:49

a.m. IST.

Thirteen of the 16 major sectors gained while the broader

midcaps and smallcaps advanced about

0.4% each.

Powell pointed to a possible September interest rate cut in

his Jackson Hole Symposium speech on Friday, saying that risks

to the job market were rising, even as he noted that inflation

remained a threat and that a decision wasn't set in stone.

This led to a rise in rate cut expectations, with traders

now seeing an 84% chance of a cut in September compared to 75%

before Powell's speech.

Lower U.S. rates make emerging markets, including India,

more appealing to foreign investors.

IT companies, which get a substantial portion of

their revenue from the U.S., jumped 2.5% and were the biggest

contributors to the benchmark's gains.

"The U.S. rate cut should be helpful for the IT sector as it

can revive technology spending, but India-U.S. trade uncertainty

is an overhang for the market ahead of the looming deadline for

additional 25% tariffs," said Anita Gandhi, founder and head of

institutional business at Arihant Capital Markets.

U.S. President Donald Trump's additional 25% tariffs on

Indian goods are set to take effect on August 27, increasing the

total duties on Indian goods to a steep rate of up to 50%.

Among stocks, Yes Bank rose 2.2% after it said

Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation has

received the Indian central bank's approval to buy up to 24.99%

stake in the lender.