Mumbai, Sep 17 : The Indian benchmark indices opened higher on Wednesday, buoyed by hopes of a Fed rate cut tonight and positive cues around the renewed India-US trade negotiations.

As of 9.28 am, the Sensex was up 151 points or 0.18 per cent at 82,532, and the Nifty was up 58 points or 0.23 per cent at 25,297.

The broad cap indices outperformed benchmark indices, as Nifty Midcap 100 inched up by 0.28 per cent, and the Nifty Small cap 100 moved up 0.60 per cent.

Tata Consumer Products (up 2.65 per cent), Tata Motors, Trent, NTPC and ONGC were among major gainers on the Nifty, while losers were Bajaj Finance, Cipla, ICICI Bank and Tech Mahindra.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty IT, the top gainer, jumped 0.91 per cent. Nifty Realty (up 0.52 per cent) and Nifty Oil and gas (up 0.43 per cent) were the other notable gainers. All sectors except Nifty Metal (down 0.07 per cent) and Nifty Pharma were trading in the green.

Technically, Nifty is positioned above its key near-term averages. Analysts said that the immediate support for the Nifty has now shifted up to the 25,000 level, and the 25,420-25,500 zones could offer resistance.

Markets are pricing in a 25-basis-point cut at the conclusion of the two-day Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on Wednesday, responding to labour market deterioration shown in recent economic data.

Traders will also scrutinise the accompanying statement and officials' economic projections for guidance on the rate outlook.

A US trade representative delegation led by Chief Negotiator Brendan Lynch met with Indian Commerce Department officials on Tuesday to advance discussions on the India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA).

The talks were described as positive and forward-looking, with both sides agreeing to intensify efforts toward early conclusion of a mutually beneficial trade deal.

Major US indices declined modestly overnight as the Nasdaq dipped 0.08 per cent, the S&P 500 lost 0.13 per cent, and the Dow slipped 0.27 per cent.

Most of the Asian markets made strong gains during the morning session. While China's Shanghai index advanced 0.41 per cent, and Shenzhen jumped 1.02 per cent, Japan's Nikkei edged up 0.23 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index inched up 1.23 per cent. South Korea's Kospi dipped 0.94 per cent.

On Tuesday, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) purchased equities worth Rs 308 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of equities worth Rs 1,518 crore.

/IANS