Mumbai, May 15 -- The key equity indices witnessed major gains in afternoon trade, aided by easing inflation and positive cues from U.S.-China trade developments. The Nifty traded above the 25,000 level. Auto shares extended gains for the third consecutive trading session. The market was volatile due to the weekly expiry of the Nifty F&O series today.

At 14:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, jumped 1,355.84 points or 1.67% to 82,686.40. The Nifty 50 index added 410.40 points or 1.65% to 25,084.70.

The broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.62% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.87%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,598 shares rose and 1,304 shares fell. A total of 152 shares were unchanged.

The...