Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty found firmer ground on Friday, propelled by a rally in market heavyweights Reliance Industries, ITC and Bharti Airtel amid a supportive trend overseas.

Recovering from the sharp decline in the previous trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 260.30 points or 0.36 per cent to settle at 72,664.47. During the day, it rallied 542.37 points or 0.74 per cent to 72,946.54.

The NSE Nifty climbed 97.70 points or 0.44 per cent to 22,055.20.

From the Sensex basket, Power Grid, NTPC, JSW Steel, Asian Paints, ITC, Bharti Airtel, Hindustan Unilever and Tata Motors were the biggest gainers.

On the other hand, Tata Consultancy Services, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Infosys, Wipro, Mahindra & Mahindra and HDFC Bank were among the laggards.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong settled with gains.

European markets were trading in the green. Wall Street ended in positive territory on Thursday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.41 per cent to USD 84.22 a barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 6,994.86 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

In the previous session, the BSE benchmark dropped 1,062.22 points or 1.45 per cent to settle at 72,404.17 on Thursday. The NSE Nifty dived 345 points or 1.55 per cent to 21,957.50.

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