Indian stock market, Jan. 4 -- Indian equity benchmarks posted solid gains on Friday, January 2, supported by broad-based buying across sectors and rising optimism ahead of the Q3 earnings season. The Sensex advanced 573 points, or 0.67%, to close at 85,762.01.

The Nifty 50 scaled a fresh all-time high of 26,340 during intraday trade before easing slightly to end at a record closing level of 26,328.55, up 182 points, or 0.70%. Meanwhile, the BSE Midcap index gained 0.97% and the Smallcap index rose 0.79%.

According to Sumeet Bagadia, Executive Director at Choice Broking, Nifty 50 opened on a strong positive note and sustained its upward momentum throughout the session, indicating underlying bullish strength. The index briefly crossed th...