Mumbai, July 30 -- The headline equity benchmarks closed with modest gains today, aided by strong Q1 earnings from Larsen & Toubro (L&T). However, overall sentiment stayed cautious ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy outcome due later tonight. Investors also kept a close watch on progress in the India-U.S. trade discussions. The Nifty ended above the 24,850 level, supported by buying in IT, FMCG, and consumer durables stocks.

The S&P BSE Sensex advanced 143.91 points or 0.18% to 81,481.86. The Nifty 50 index added 33.95 points or 0.14% to 24,855.05.

Larsen & Toubro (up 4.87%), Bharti Airtel (up 0.87%) and HDFC Bank (up 0.16%) boosted the Nifty higher today.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.17% and the S&P...