Mumbai, Sep 3 : The Indian benchmark indices opened flat on Wednesday, tracking weak global cues, while investors await the outcome of the two-day GST Council meeting to revise rates.

As of 9.29 am, the Sensex moved 32 points up, or 0.04 per cent to 80,190, while the Nifty 50 inched up 2 points, or 0.01 per cent to 24,582.

The broadcap indices, Nifty Midcap 100 advanced by 0.278 per cent, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 inched up 0.36 per cent.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty Metal was the top gainer, rising 1.64 per cent, followed by Nifty Oil & Gas, which gained 0.77 per cent. Nifty Pharma added 0.12 per cent and Nifty PSU Bank added 0.69 per cent each.

In the Nifty pack, top gainers included Tata Steel (2.22 per cent) and Hindalco (1.53 per cent). Other gainers included ONGC, Axis Bank and TCS. Meanwhile, the top laggards were Hero Motocorp, TATA Cons. Prod, Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank and SBI Life Insurance.

Analysts said that Nifty continued its recovery momentum on the daily chart and is holding firmly above the 24,400 support zone.

"The index is consolidating within a broad range, indicating a healthy pause after recent gains. Immediate support is placed at 24,500, followed by 24,300. The resistance is seen near 24,800, followed by the crucial 25,000 psychological mark," said Mandar Bhojane from Choice Broking.

"Global uncertainty will increase market volatility. Since India has refused Trump's demands, the 25 per cent penal tariff is unlikely to be lifted, impacting our exports and related jobs in the short run," added VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited.

Q1 GDP growth of 7.8 per cent indicates economic momentum, which will be accelerated by GST reforms.

The net result of all these can be an upward revision in the earnings growth for FY26 and FY27. With this, FIIs may turn to net buyers in India, triggering a rally in the market within a few weeks, he added.

Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed as investors assessed rising global bond yields and the latest developments related to trade and tariffs.

Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday that the world was facing a choice of 'peace or war' and 'dialogues or confrontation', responding to US President Donald Trump, who alleged that Beijing was conspiring against Washington in collusion with Russia and North Korea.

The US markets ended in the red zone overnight, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped by 0.55 per cent, while the Nasdaq declined by 0.82 per cent and the S&P 500 lost 0.69 per cent.

The Asian markets traded largely in red zone. China's Shanghai index slipped 1 per cent, and Shenzhen dipped 0.67 per cent. Japan's Nikkei was down 0.29 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dipped 0.40 per cent. South Korea's Kospi inched up 0.38 per cent.

On Tuesday, foreign investors (FIIs/FPIs) turned net buyers with inflows worth Rs 512 crore worth of Indian equities, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) net bought shares worth Rs 2,118 crore.

/IANS