Mumbai, Feb. 18 -- The domestic equity benchmarks closed with decent gains on Wednesday, extending their rally to a third straight session. Sentiment, however, remained cautious amid a broader risk-off tone in overseas markets, while investors continued to track upcoming macro data for direction. In the absence of major domestic triggers, trading remained selective and largely stock-specific. The Nifty settled above the 25,800 mark, supported by strength in metal, PSU bank and FMCG counters, while IT shares underperformed amid lingering AI-related uncertainties, limiting the overall upside.

The S&P BSE Sensex jumped 283.29 points or 0.34% to 83,734.25. The Nifty 50 index rallied 93.95 points or 0.37% to 25,819.35. Over the three consecut...