Market benchmark Sensex rose over 150 points in early trade on Thursday, tracking gains in index majors HDFC twins, ITC and Bajaj Finance amid largely positive cues from Asian peers.

The 30-share BSE index was trading 174.54 points or 0.36 per cent higher at 48,852.09 in initial deals.

Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty advanced 69.05 points or 0.47 per cent to 14,686.90.

Bajaj Auto was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, gaining over 2 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finance, ITC, HDFC, Titan, Maruti and M&M.

On the other hand, HCL Tech, Sun Pharma, Bharti Airtel and PowerGrid were among laggards.

In the previous session, Sensex jumped 424.04 points or 0.88 per cent to close at 48,677.55, while Nifty surged 121.35 points or 0.84 per cent to 14,617.85.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,110.50 crore on Wednesday, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased shares worth Rs 240.61 crore, according to provisional exchange data.

The trend of positive news alternating with negative news continues, said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

"US President Joe Biden's decision to back waiving intellectual property rights on vaccines is a big positive. This will quicken the vaccination process enabling countries like India to come out of the pandemic faster. But data on daily infections indicate a rise, though mild, after five days of decline. Also, lockdowns and restrictions on mobility are increasing, impacting the economic recovery," he noted.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul were trading on a positive note in mid-session deals, while Shanghai was in the red.

Equities on Wall Street ended on a mixed note in overnight trade.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.10 per cent higher at USD 69.03 per barrel.