Mumbai, July 17 -- Indian equity benchmark indices ended sharply higher on Friday, with the Sensex surging nearly 965 points and the Nifty gaining over 1 per cent, led by strong buying in IT and banking stocks amid optimism over business updates and expectations of healthy first-quarter earnings.

The BSE Sensex closed at 78,151.45, up 964.58 points or 1.25 per cent, while the Nifty 50 settled at 24,334.30, gaining 261.55 points or 1.09 per cent.

According to Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments Limited, market momentum is shifting towards large-cap stocks, particularly in the IT and banking sectors.

"There is a shift in market momentum, with strong traction moving toward large-cap stocks, led by the IT and banking sectors...