Equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty closed higher on Friday as buying in index majors M&M, Reliance Industries and ITC helped the indices rebound from early lows.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 253.31 points, or 0.34 per cent, to settle at 73,917.03.

The NSE Nifty advanced 62.25 points, or 0.28 per cent, to 22,466.10.

M&M was the biggest gainer on the Sensex chart, rising 5.97 per cent, followed by JSW Steel, Ultra Cement, Kotak Bank, ITC and NTPC.

Reliance Industries gained 0.73 per cent to close at Rs 2,871 apiece.

In contrast, TCS, HCL Tech, HUL, Nestle Industries, Bajaj Finserv, Wipro and Infosys were among the losers.

"Despite mixed global signals and uncertainties surrounding the US Fed, the Indian market experienced a robust recovery, largely fuelled by the outperformance of the broader market and positive Q4 earnings.

"Further, some index heavyweight earnings surpassed expectations, and midcap and small-cap stocks continued to exhibit buying interest during dips. Auto and consumer durables particularly stood out with strong earnings momentum," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

In Asian markets, Shanghai and Hong Kong logged gains, while Seoul and Nikkei closed in the red.

European markets were trading in the negative territory. Wall Street ended in the green in the overnight trade on Thursday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude rose 0.25 per cent to USD 83.48 a barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 776.49 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

On Thursday, the BSE benchmark climbed 676.69 points or 0.93 per cent to settle at 73,663.72. The NSE Nifty surged 203.30 points or 0.92 per cent to 22,403.85.

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