Key benchmark indices were trading higher in early trade. At 9:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 113.26 points or 0.32% at 35,263.27. The Nifty 50 index was up 15.50 points or 0.15% at 10,564.65.

The government on Tuesday appointed Shaktikanta Das, member of the fifteenth finance commission, as the governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), a day after Urjit Patel resigned.

On the political front, the Congress party is set to form governments in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and is locked in a close fight with BJP in Madhya Pradesh. However, in Mizoram, Congress gave way to the MNF while in Telangana, the TRS retained power.

As per Madhya Pradesh Assembly Election 2018 results status on Wednesday morning, Congress has won 114 seats. On the other hand, the BJP has won 109. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Samajwadi Party (SP) and independents have till now managed to claim 2, 1 and 4 seats, respectively. The majority mark in the state is 116.

Among secondary barometers, the BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.58%. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.42%.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On BSE, 621 shares rose and 228 shares fell. A total of 24 shares were unchanged.

Overseas, most Asian stocks were trading higher as US President Donald trump sounded upbeat about a trade deal with China.

In a media interview, Trump said talks were taking place with Beijing by phone and he would not raise tariffs on Chinese imports until he was sure about a deal. He also said he would intervene in the Justice Department's case against a top executive at China's Huawei Technologies if it would serve national security interests or help close a trade deal. Canadian court on Tuesday granted bail to the executive in a move that could help placate Chinese officials angered by the arrest.

US stocks closed mostly lower Tuesday in a session that saw the key indexes weave in and out of positive territory as investors weighed mounting political tension in the nation's capital against renewed optimism over US-China trade talks.

The US and China launched formal trade talks with a phone call. In the call, China informed US officials that it had agreed to reduce tariffs on US autos to 15%, down from 40%.

On the data front, the National Federation of Independent Businesses issued its small business optimism index for November, showing it fell to 104.8 from 107.1 in October. Further, the wholesale cost of goods and services rose by 0.1% in November. Year-over-year rises in producer prices, however, fell to 2.5% from 2.9%, according to the Labor Department.

Back home, Unichem Laboratories was up 1.78%. The company received a tentative approval from the United States food and Drug Administration for its Tadalafil tablets in the strengths of 2.5 mg, 5 mg, 10 mg and 20 mg. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 December 2018.

Reliance Industries was up 0.05%. The board of directors of Reliance Industries accorded its approval to a scheme of arrangement for transfer of its fibre undertaking, on a going concern basis, to a separate company and a scheme of arrangement for transfer of its tower undertaking, on a going concern basis, to a separate company. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 December 2018.

Zydus Wellness (ZWL) was up 1.52%. The company announced that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has granted approval for ZWL's acquisition of Heinz India jointly with Cadila Healthcare. The definitive agreement in relation to this acquisition was signed on 24 October 2018. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 December 2018.

UFO Moviez India was up 3.69%. The company informed about a reduction in purchase consideration for the transfer of shares of Qube Digital Cinema (QDCPL) from Nomura Asia Investment (MB) Pte., CSI BD (Mauritius), Intel Capital Corporation and/or Streetedge Capital LP to UFO Moviez India and India Advantage Fund S4 I, a fund managed by ICICI Venture Funds Management Company. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 December 2018.

PNC Infratech was up 3.16%. The company informed that PNC Challakere (Karnataka) Highways, the company's wholly owned subsidiary, has submitted duly executed financing documents to NHAI for the Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) Project in Karnataka worth Rs 1157 crore. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 December 2018.