Mumbai, Aug 21 : The Indian equity indices settled the session with slight gain on Thursday, continuing the rally for the fourth consecutive day. The session remained range-bound amid mixed reaction-value buying and profit booking at the same time.

Sensex closed at 82,000.71, up 142.97 points or 0.17 per cent. Continuing the rally for the fourth consecutive session, the 30-share index opened with a decent gap-up at 82,220.46 against last session's closing of 81,857.84. However, the index remained range-bound amid profit booking in the Auto and FMCG sectors.

Nifty settled the session at 25,083.75, up 0.13 per cent or 33.20 points.

"Indian equities ended mixed, as investors turned to profit booking after a recent rally and concerns over the premium valuation due to the subdued end of Q1 earnings," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd.

In a positive development, the Group of Ministers (GoM) on GST rate rationalisation approved the proposal to scrap the current four-rate structure and move towards dual rates of 5 per cent and 18 per cent.

"This marks the first major step in implementing the next-generation GST reforms announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day address," said Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Research, Wealth Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.

India's record-high composite PMI in August, reflecting strong expansion in both manufacturing and services, particularly in business activity, may provide stability in the near term, he added.

Bajaj FinServ, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finance, L&T, BEL, Sun Pharma, and Titan were the top gainers from the Sensex basket. PowerGrid, Eternal, Hindustan Unilever, NTPC, Mahindra and Mahindra, and Tata Motors settled in negative territory.

The sectoral indices experienced a mixed reaction amid value buying and profit booking. NiftyFin Services (up 85 points or 0.32 per cent) and Nifty Bank (up 56.95 points or 0.10 per cent) ended the session in green. While Nifty Auto (down 91.75 points or 0.36 per cent) and Nifty FMCG ( down 361 points or 0.64 per cent) settled in negative territory. Nifty IT closed flat.

The broader indices felt some pressure amid profit booking. Nifty Midcap 100 fell 221 points or 0.38 per cent, while Nifty Small Cap 100 and Nifty 100 ended the session almost flat.

Going ahead, analysts expect the Indian market to remain firm, backed by optimism around GST reforms and an improved pace of corporate earnings growth.

Rupee traded weak by 0.17 at 87.22 as markets reacted to the anticipated GST restructuring.

/IANS