The Sensex at the Bombay Stock Exchange rose 54 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 19,977 in early trade, today, on fresh buying by funds and retail investors. Later, the Sensex gained further ground, and stood 118 points, or 0.6 percent in the green, at 20,042 in afternoon trade, a short while ago.Key stock indices in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea had lost between 0.2 percent and 1.2 percent, today. Over on Wall Street, the US Dow Jones Industrial Average had ended 0.3 per cent higher in yesterday's trade, after encouraging weekly jobless claims data.