Market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rallied in early trade on Thursday, tracking a decline in crude oil prices and a positive trend in Asian equities.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 440.23 points to 77,435.76 in early deals. The 50-share NSE Nifty went up by 137.80 points to 24,147.60.

From the 30-Sensex firms, InterGlobe Aviation, Maruti, Mahindra & Mahindra, UltraTech Cement, State Bank of India and Hindustan Unilever were among the major winners.

Power Grid, Titan, Infosys and Bharat Electronics were among the laggards.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, traded 1.70 per cent lower at USD 72.49 per barrel.

"The biggest positive for India is Brent crude falling to below USD 73 level," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi jumped over 5 per cent, Japan's Nikkei 225 index traded nearly 4 per cent higher and Shanghai's SSE Composite index quoted marginally in the green. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index quoted lower.

US markets ended on a subdued note in the previous trade.

"Crude oil prices have extended their recent decline. Oil has now erased most of the gains recorded during the recent Middle East conflict as concerns over supply disruptions have eased, geopolitical risk premiums have unwound and global supply conditions have continued to improve," Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth-tech firm, said.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 1,843.40 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

On Wednesday, the 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 790.54 points, or 1.04 per cent, to settle at 76,991.22. The Nifty climbed 197.55 points, or 0.83 per cent, to end at 24,021.65.