Equity indices nudge higher, Nifty pharma up 0.8%

Equity benchmark indices wiped out early losses on Thursday and closed in the positive terrain led by gains in pharma counters.

The BSE SandP Sensex closed 92 points or 0.19 per cent higher at 49,584 while the Nifty 50 ticked up by 31 points or 0.21 per cent to 14,596.

Sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were mixed with Nifty pharma gaining by 0.8 per cent, FMCG by 0.7 per cent and auto by 0.3 per cent.

Among stocks, Hindustan Aeronautics surged by 9.5 per cent after the government approved procurement of 83 indigenously developed light combat aircraft Tejas for Indian Air Force at a cost of Rs 48,000 crore.

The others which gained marginally included IndianOil Corporation, GAIL, ITC, Britannia and Tata Motors.

However, HCL Technologies dropped by 2.3 per cent to Rs 1,031 per share as traders booked profits.

Tech Mahindra and Wipro slipped by 1.3 per cent each while Infosys lost by 1.2 per cent.

Meanwhile, Japanese stocks jumped to a three-decade high and other Asian equities were near record peaks as investors focused on US stimulus prospects and extended bets on global recovery and growth.