Mumbai, Sep 10 (IANS) The Indian equity indices settled the session in positive territory on Wednesday, continuing the positive momentum buoyed by optimism around the India-US trade deal and GST rationalisation. Sensex ended the session at 81,425.15, up 323 points or 0.43 per cent. The 30-share index opened with a decent gap-up at 81,504.36 against the last session's closing price of 81,101.32 amid buying in IT and FMCG stocks. The index hit an intra-day high at 81,643.88.

Nifty closed at 24,973.10, up 104.50 points or 0.42 per cent. "Renewed optimism around ongoing trade negotiations between India and the US lifted market sentiment. Anticipation of stronger H2 FY26 earnings, driven by GST rationalisation and the benefits of monetary easing, is providing resilience to valuations," said analysts. The IT index extended its outperformance on hopes of a potential Fed rate cut next week and a revival in technology spending. Investors remain focused on the progress of India-US trade talks for signals of a constructive resolution to tariff-related issues, he added.

BEL, HCL Tech, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, TCS, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, SBIN, L&T, Adani Ports, ITC, Bajaj FinServ and Kotak Bank were the top gainers from the Sensex basket. While Mahindra and Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Ultratech Cement, Eternal, and PowerGrid settled in negative territory. The majority of sectoral indices ended the session on a positive note. Nifty Fin Services jumped 161.80 points or 0.62 per cent, Nifty Bank escalated 319 points or 0.59 per cent, Nifty FMCG surged 359 points or 0.64 per cent, and Nifty IT soared 927 points or 2.63 per cent. Nifty Auto fell 348.55 points or 1.28 per cent amid profit booking. The broader market followed suit as well. Nifty smallcap 100 moved 130 points or 0.73 per cent, Nifty midcap100 jumped 535 points or 0.93 per cent, and Nifty 100 ended the session 319 points or 0.59 per cent higher.