Mumbai, Jan. 16 -- The headline equity benchmarks traded with significant gains in early afternoon trade. The Nifty traded above 26,800 level. Realty shares advanced after declining for previous seven consecutive trading session.

At 12:28 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, jumped 405.95 points or 0.49% to 83,788.86. The Nifty 50 index surged 145.80 points or 0.57% to 25,811.40.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rallied 0.38% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.05%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,087 shares rose and 1,920 shares fell. A total of 226 shares were unchanged.

Derivatives:

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 0.26% to 1...