Equity gauges Sensex and Nifty firmed up gains on Wednesday as a result of intense buying mainly in IT shares amid expectations of robust quarterly earnings and favourable economic data. At close, the BSE Sensex quoted 134.32 points or 0.25 per cent higher at 52,904.05 – recovering from its early losses to mark its second straight session of gains. Likewise, the broader NSE Nifty advanced 41.60 points or 0.26 per cent to end at 15,853.95 – the third straight session of gains for the index. On the Sensex chart, top three performers were IT firms, with Tech Mahindra gaining the most by rising 2.69 per cent, followed by HCL Tech and Infosys.