Sensex edges higher; defensive stocks surge

Mumbai: The BSE Sensex rose on Friday as defensive stocks such as Sun Pharmaceutical Industries and Ranbaxy Laboratories jumped on the U.S. regulator's approval for a key drug while IT stocks gained after rival Accenture Plc reported robust quarterly revenue growth.

Ranbaxy provisionally rose 4.6 per cent while its new owner Sun Pharma ended 3.9 percent higher.

Among software stocks, Tata Consultancy Services provisionally rose 4 percent while Infosys ended 1.4 per cent higher. The Sensex provisionally closed 0.15 per cent higher, while the Nifty gained 0.24 per cent, shrugging off two consecutive days of declines.