The NSE index rose for a second consecutive session to close at its highest in nearly a year as Glenmark Pharmaceuticals and Aurobindo Pharma gained after getting approvals for generic versions of a blockbuster cholesterol drug in the US.
The approvals came after a US judge had on Tuesday refused to issue a temporary restraining order blocking the approval of generic versions of AstraZeneca's Crestor in the United States - a ruling that was seen favouring the rights of generics drug makers.
The broader NSE index gained 37.3 points or 0.44 per cent to 8,565.85, its highest close since August 6.
The BSE index rose 128.27 or 0.46 per cent to 27,915.89.
Barring consumer durables, all other BSE sectoral indices ended in the green. Among them, realty index gained the most by 2.41 per cent, healthcare 2.38 per cent, oil & gas 1.56 per cent and power 1.5 per cent, while consumer durables index was down 0.24 per cent.
Top five Sensex gainers were Coal India (+3.23%), Dr Reddy's (+2.74%), GAIL (+2.48%), Cipla (+2.39%) and Sun Pharma (+1.89%), while the major losers were Wipro (-1.97%), Axis Bank (-0.98%), Tata Motors (-0.87%), ICICI Bank (-0.58%) and Maruti (-0.5%).
Pharma stocks climb
The Nifty Pharma Index gained as much as 1.62 per cent, with Glenmark Pharmaceuticals rising 2.4 per cent and Aurobindo Pharma climbing 5.09 per cent on the US ruling.
The Nifty Midcap 100 Index, which hit a record high last week, was up 0.75 per cent, with Piramal Enterprises and Cadila Healthcare among the top percentage gainers.
Wipro fell as much as 5.69 per cent after the country's third-biggest software services exporter on Tuesday posted results that missed estimates and forecast muted guidance.
European shares advanced on Wednesday, with the technology sector leading the market higher after SAP and ASML Holding reported forecast-beating quarterly results.
A report by SMC Global said: " Asian stocks retreated from near a three-month high and South Korea's won weakened as crude oil held below $45 a barrel amid a worsening outlook for the global economy. Turkey's lira sank towards a record low amid the fallout of a failed coup attempt. Wall Street closed mixed Tuesday after weeks of record highs for stocks, as investors digested second-quarter earnings.The International Monetary Fund trimmed its global economic growth outlook for this year and the next, warning that the surprise vote on Brexit has triggered a wave of uncertainty amid already-fragile business and consumer confidence. The growth forecast for this year was slashed to 3.1 per cent from 3.2 per cent projected in April. The outlook for next year was lowered to 3.4 per cent from 3.5 per cent."