MUMBAI: The benchmark BSE Sensex rose over 36 points to 26,101 in early trade on Thursday, extending its climb for the third straight day on short-covering in view of April derivatives series expiry and positive global cues.

A firming trend in most of Asia, tracking overnight gains in the US after the Federal Reserve kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged, gave buying in domestic markets a leg-up, traders said.

Taking note of improvement in the labour market, the US central bank cited slower economic growth for its policy move while signalling faith in outlook of the economy.

In a related development, the Bank of Japan too kept rates steady.

The 30-share index was trading higher by 36.42 points, or 0.13%, to 26,100.54. The gauge had gained 385 points in the previous two sessions.

That apart, better-than-estimated earnings by some companies came as a positive for sentiment.

The NSE Nifty rose 10.30 points, or 0.12%, to 7,990.20 in early trade.

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