Equity benchmark indices extend gains

 Indian equity benchmark indices extended their gains on Thursday from the previous session. At 9.55 a.m., Sensex was 0.8 per cent up at 57,473 points, whereas Nifty 0.7 per cent up at 17,252 points.

Among the stocks, Coal India, Asian Paints, ITC, IndusInd Bank, and Reliance Industries were the top five gainers, while Nestle India, Hindalco, Tata Steel, Tech Mahindra and ONGC were the top five losers, NSE data showed.

"Even though there is some margin pressure in IT, results of mid-cap IT stocks indicate that earnings momentum is strong," said V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.