Indian benchmark indices gained on Thursday, tracking positive sentiment in Asian shares. The U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting, which signaled a potential rate cut in September, boosted investor confidence.

The Sensex rose by 147.89 points, or 0.18%, to settle at 81,053.19, while the Nifty added 41.30 points, or 0.17%, to finish at 24,811.50. Market breadth was positive, with over 2,100 stocks closing higher and over 1,200 ending lower.

Among the top Nifty performers were Grasim Industries, Tata Consumer Products, Tata Steel, Bharti Airtel, and Apollo Hospitals. Tata Motors, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, NTPC, Wipro, and Mahindra & Mahindra experienced declines.

Sectorally, the power index dipped by 1%, and the pharma, oil & gas, auto, and IT sectors ended slightly lower. Banking, FMCG, metal, realty, and telecom sectors posted gains ranging from 0.5% to 1.4%.

Both the BSE midcap and smallcap indices recorded a 0.5% increase.