In the Nifty50 pack, Bajaj Auto led the gainers, rising 3 per cent after strong Q4 performance, while Bajaj Finance and SBI Life Insurance also rose over 2 per cent, thanks to strong results. Bulls continued to dominate at Dalal Street amid the mixed global cues. Domestic equity markets settled higher for another session to hit nine-week highs on Thursday. All round buying across the sectors pushed the markets higher. Consistent buying from foreign investors supported the sentiments. For the day, NSE's Nifty50 gained 101.45 points, or 0.57 per cent to close at 17,915.05. BSE Sensex jumped 348.80 points, or 0.58 per cent, to settle at 60,649.38. Broader markets performed in tandem with the headline peers as BSE midcap and smallcap indices added about half a per cent each. Fear gauge India VIX eased about 2 per cent to 11.43-mark. Markets turned extremely bullish on the F&O expiry day, which shows that investors are willing to bet big on local stocks irrespective of the current global macroeconomic challenges. It looks like strong FII participation also contributed to the broad market surge as IT, realty and select metal stocks attracted significant buying, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities. "Technically, post the intra-day breakout of the 17,820 level, the positive momentum intensified. The index has also formed a bullish candle on daily charts which is grossly positive. As long as the Nifty is trading above 17,820, the positive sentiment is likely to continue. Above the same, the market could move up to 18,000-18,050. However, below 17,800, the index could slip till 17,750-17,725," he said. On a sectoral front, only the Nifty FMCG index settled lower. Nifty Realty Index added about 2 per cent, while Nifty IT index gained over a per cent. Nifty Auto, Healthcare, Metal and Private Bank indices were among the other gainers for the day. In the Nifty50 pack, Bajaj Auto led the gainers, rising 3 per cent after a strong Q4 performance. Bajaj Finance and SBI Life Insurance also rose over 2 per cent thanks to strong results. Bajaj Finserv was in demand ahead of its earnings announcement and rose 2 per cent, akin to UPL and Bharat Petroleum. On the downside, HDFC Life Insurance Company's muted performance disappointed the street and stock dropped over 2 per cent. Hindustan Unilever shed about 2 per cent before its earnings, while ONGC, Axis Bank, Power Grid and Adani Ports settled lower, falling about a per cent, each. The domestic market is gradually shifting towards a positive terrain, supported by FIIs inflows and positive Q4 earnings from banks, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. "On the global front, the US Q1 GDP number which will be unveiled today is anticipated to moderate on a QoQ basis amid concerns over banking contagion and a slowing economy. The next week's Fed's policy will be keenly monitored. The US Fed may further hike by 25 bps, but the expectation is that this will represent the peak and a long pause," he said. A total of 3,614 shares were traded on BSE on Thursday, of which 2,041 settled in green. 1,444 stocks ended the session with gains, while 129 shares remained unchanged. A total of 196 shares hit their upper circuit, whereas 123 tested the lower circuit levels for the day. In the broader markets, Chennai Petroleum Corporation surged about 14 per cent after the company announced a strong Q4 performance. Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals jumped more than 11 per cent. Alok Industries ended 8 per cent higher, while L&T Technology Services posted similar gains after the earnings call. CE Info Systems jumped over 6 per cent. On the contrary, Lloyd Steels Industries tanked 6 per cent after the company reported a disappointing set of numbers in the March 2023 quarter. Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals dropped 6 per cent on the back of profit booking, Voltas dropped over 6 per cent amid the restructuring buzz. BrightCom Group hit lower circuit of 5 per cent for the straight 13th session.