Mumbai, July 8 -- Equity benchmarks closed higher today, buoyed by a late rally in banking and financial services stocks, with the Nifty ending above the 25,500 level. However, gains were capped by weakness in consumer durables, pharma, and healthcare shares. Overall sentiment remained cautious amid global uncertainty triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement of fresh import tariffs on key trade partners.

The S&P BSE Sensex, added 270.01 points or 0.32% to 83,712.51. The Nifty 50 index rose 61.20 points or 0.24% to 25,522.50.

Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 3.61%), HDFC Bank (up 0.72%) and ICICI Bank (up 0.42%) boosted the indices.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.01% and t...