Markets closed today on account of Mahashivratri

Indian stock markets will remain closed on Thursday on account of Mahashivratri. Trading will now resume on Friday.

The currency markets will also be shut during the day, while the commodity markets will be closed in the morning session, but will resume trading in the evening.

Meanwhile, Asian stocks -- which are open on Thursday -- extended their rebound from a two-month low after a report on US consumer prices calmed concerns about inflation and lifted the Dow Jones Industrial Average to a record close.

On Wednesday, the Indian equity market ended higher led by across-the-board gains amid positive global cues. The Sensex ended 254.03 points, or 0.50 percent higher at 51,279.51, while the Nifty closed at 15,174.80, up 76.40 points, or 0.51 percent. Midcap and smallcap indices outperformed the benchmarks.

Among sectors, Nifty IT, Nifty Metal and Nifty Pharma rallied the most over 1 percent each. On the Nifty50 index, Eicher Motors, JSW Steel, Hindalco Industries, Tata Steel and Bajaj Finance were the top gainers, while SBI Life insurance, ONGC, IOC, HDFC Life Insurance and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the top index losers.

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee on Wednesday recovered from the day's lows to end higher by a marginal 2 paise at 72.91 against the American currency, tracking positive investor sentiment globally in the wake of easing bond yields. At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened at 72.97 against the greenback and witnessed an intraday high of 72.88 and a low of 73.10, according to news agency PTI.