Markets in India closed higher on Thursday with the Sensex rising 118 points to close at 28,123 and the Nifty rising 49 to end at 8,763. Trading was boosted by strong banking stocks, with the Nifty Bank index advancing by 311 points to end the day at 19,353.

IndusInd Bank gained the most among banks listed on the exchange, with its shares gaining 3.75% to climb to Rs 1,196 per share. Other banks including Bank of Baroda, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Federal Bank gained around 1%-2.4% each. Other companies including Bharti Airtel and Adani Ports were among those whose stocks gained the most during trading. Meanwhile, the rupee traded flat at Rs 66.77 against the dollar (recorded at 2 pm IST).

Along with the performance of banking stocks, markets were also boosted by the minutes of the United States’ Federal Reserve’s July meeting, which indicated that the country’s central bank would not cut rates during its next policy meeting in September. The minutes said that the bank's policymakers were looking to gather more economic data before raising interest rates.