Key indices were firm in early trade Wednesday even as the near term outlook on the market remains hazy in the absence of any key triggers. Brokers said there was buying interest at lower levels, but traders and money managers were wary of chasing prices.

The Sensex was at 19662, up 101 points and the Nifty at 5953, up 30 points.Tata Motors led gainers among frontline stocks, up a little over 3 percent to Rs 308. The share market company will declare its third quarter numbers on Thursday. Analysts do not expect any major surprise as the company’s domestic sales have been sluggish over the last quarter.

Unitech shares were up over 2 percent to Rs 29.40, ahead of its third quarter earnings later in the day. The stock had plunged 18 percent on Tuesday on allegations that the CBI prosecutor had colluded with Unitech boss Sanjay Chandra to sabotage the judicial process in the 2G scam investigation.

Opto Circuits, Pidilite, Berger Paints and Motherson Sumi were among the key gainers in the midcap space, up between 2-3 percent. Lanco Infra, MMTC and Hindustan Copper were among the laggards, down between 1-3 percent. Broadly, auto shares were doing well, while FCMG shares were at the bottom of the heap at this hour.

LOCAL MARKETS PREVIOUS CLOSE

•      BSE index 19,561.04 (+0.52 pct)
•      NSE index 5,922.50 (+0.42 pct)
•      Rupee 53.85/86 per dollar (53.8450/8550)
•      10-year bond yield 7.87 pct (7.86 pct)
•      5-year OIS rate 7.27 pct (7.26 pct)
•      1-year OIS rate 7.64 pct (7.63 pct)
•      Call money 7.75/7.85 pct (7.80/7.85 pct)