Mumbai, Dec 15 (IANS): Value buying propelled a barometer index of the Indian equity markets to gain 74 points during the mid-afternoon trade session on Tuesday.

Initially, both the bellwether indices of the Indian equity markets opened on a slightly positive note in sync with their Asian peers and a rebound in oil prices that supported energy stocks.

Nevertheless, latest figures showing a firming-up trend in annual wholesale and retail inflation weighed on markets which ceded their marginal gains.

In addition, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's comments which indicated a washout of winter session due to parliamentary logjam subdued sentiments. The logjam will delay the passage of key economic legislations like the Goods and Services Tax (GST) bill. 

Should the bill not secure clearance in this session, it will miss its intended roll-out date of April 1 next year.

Besides the GST, investors were cautious ahead of the US Federal Reserves' Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meet slated for Wednesday and Thursday.

The FOMC will decide whether or not to raise interest rates in the US. A hike in interest rates which have been at near-zero levels since the last decade will lead to a massive pull-back of foreign funds from emerging economies like India. 

It is also expected to dent business margins as access to capital from the US will become expensive.

Notwithstanding the downward trajectory, markets rose on the back of value buying.

The barometer 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) was trading up by 74 points during the mid-afternoon session. 

Similarly, the wider 50-scrip Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) was trading in the green. It was trading higher by 12.15 points or 0.16 percent at 7,662.20 points.

The Sensex of the S&P Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 25,186.68 points, was trading at 25,224.37 points (at 1.45 p.m.) -- up 74.02 points or 0.29 percent from the previous day's close at 25,150.35 points.

The Sensex has so far touched a high of 25,243.78 points and a low of 25,075.54 points during the intra-day trade.

"Rising inflation figures and finance minister's comments on the winter session of parliament reined in Monday's gains," Anand James, co-head, technical research desk with Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services, told IANS.

On Monday, the Sensex gained by 105.92 points or 0.42 percent, while the Nifty rose by 39.60 points or 0.52 percent.

Nitasha Shankar, vice president for research with YES Securities, said that Indian markets are in a consolidation mode amidst low volumes ahead of the FOMC meet and that the market participants are positioning themselves for volatile trading sessions.