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At 1245 hrs, the Sensex was 192 points at 19,140 and the Nifty edged higher by 58 points at 5,671.
In the broader markets, the midcap index advanced 1%, in line with the BSE benchmark index and the smallcap index gained 0.7% in noon deals.
Meanwhile, in Asia, Japanese shares rose sharply and the yen fell after a media report on Tuesday said Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is considering a cut in corporate tax to counter the pain of a planned sales tax increase, while gold eased but held near three-week highs.
Tokyo's Nikkei share average climbed 2.6% in light volume, rebounding after it fell to its lowest since end-June following Monday's slower-than-expected GDP data. Tuesday's gain took the index to just below its 13-week moving average.
Asian shares as measured by MSCI Asia-Pacific ex-Japan index rose 1.0% to a two-week high, extending Monday's gain on the back of last week's upbeat Chinese factory output data, while South Korean shares advanced 1.5%.
Tuesday's gains took the MSCI Asian gauge to near its 50% retracement of its slide from a 22-month high on May 9 to an 11-month trough on June 25.
Back home, among the sectoral indices, apart from Metal and Consumer Durables indices which were down 0.6% and 0.3% respectively, all the others were in the green.
Rate sensitives like Realty, Auto and Bankex advanced 1.6-3%. Power, Teck, IT, Health Care and Capital Goods indices were the other significant gainers, up 1-2%.
The only losers among the Sensex-30 were Hindalco down 3.7% followed by Coal India, ONGC, ITC and SBI down 0.3-2%.
Meanwhile, Mahindra & Mahindra up nearly 4% ahead of its July-quarter results later in the day was the top Senex gainer. NTPC, Bajaj Auto, Wipro, HDFC Bank, Gail India and Maruti Suzuki, up 2-3% were the other notable gainers.
The market breadth was very positive. 1,236 stocks advanced while 762 stocks declined on the BSE.
