Indian equity benchmark Sensex surged by 255 points to close at an all-time high on Thursday, tracking gains in index majors HDFC Bank, L&T and HCL Tech amid signs of earnings recovery.

The 30-share BSE index settled 254.75 points or 0.48 per cent higher at its lifetime high of 53,158.85. It touched a record intra-day peak of 53,266.12. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty rose 70.25 points or 0.44 per cent to its all-time high of 15,924.20. It hit a record intraday peak of 15,952.35.

HCL Tech was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying over 5 per cent, followed by L&T, Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, UltraTech Cement, ITC, and Tata Steel.

On the other hand, Bharti Airtel, M&M, Asian Paints, Titan, and Sun Pharma were among the laggards.

"As global investors digest inflation data and the US Fed commentary, Dalal Street bulls were seen betting on economic recovery as IT stocks continue to power the indices to new highs,” said S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP Securities.

Markets seemed in no mood to oblige investors waiting on the sidelines for a correction as sector rotation played its part during the session. Capital goods made a smart comeback across market capitalisation and the broader market was buzzing with action across cement, real estate, and pharma names, he added.

“Mid cap, small cap, and large cap values remain key allocation themes as these themes will continue to deliver strong returns,” said Neeraj Chadawar, Head - Quantitative Research, Axis Securities.

However, rising inflation, dollar index, rising concern over delta variant, and the management commentaries post Q1 will be the near term monitorable indicators for the market, Chadawar added.

In the Asian market, bourses in Shanghai, Seoul, and Hong Kong ended with gains, while Tokyo was in the red.

Stock exchanges in Europe were, however, trading on a negative note in mid-session deals.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.70 per cent to $74.24 per barrel.