Mumbai, April 3 -- Key equity benchmarks closed with modest losses today as a global sell-off followed President Trump's steeper-than-expect tariff hike. IT stocks took a hit on growth concerns and potential cuts in client spending, while pharma stocks outperformed after being spared from the new tariffs.

The Nifty recovered from its intraday low of 23,145.80 to close above 23,250. Despite the downturn, India's stock market fared better than global peers, thanks to a relatively lower tariff burden-27% versus steeper levies on China (54%), Vietnam (46%), Bangladesh (37%), Thailand (36%) and Pakistan (29%). This competitive edge helped cushion the impact on Indian equities.

The S&P BSE Sensex tumbled 322.08 points or 0.42% to 76,295.36. T...