New Delhi, March 23 -- Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rallied nearly 1% on Friday, extending their winning streak to five consecutive sessions, driven by fresh foreign fund inflows and gains in banking stocks.

The BSE Sensex, comprising 30 stocks, rose by 557.45 points (0.73%) to close at 76,905.51, after touching an intraday high of 77,041.94 with a gain of 693.88 points (0.90%). Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty advanced 159.75 points (0.69%) to settle at 23,350.40.

Midcap and small-cap stocks surged by 7.7% and 8.6%, respectively, marking their strongest weekly gains in nearly five years. The Indian rupee also recorded its best week in over two years. Despite the rally, the Nifty 50 remains about 11% below its all-time high. Over the five...