Mumbai, Aug. 29 -- The frontline equity benchmarks traded in a narrow range with minor gains in early-afternoon trade. The Nifty traded above the 24,500 level. Media shares rallied after declining in the past three consecutive trading sessions.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 82.07 points or 0.12% to 80,162.64. The Nifty 50 index added 24.20 points or 0.10% to 24,525.10.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.26% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.37%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,334 shares rose and 1,505 shares fell. A total of 222 shares were unchanged.

Derivatives:

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, slipped ...