Nifty, Sensex start new year on positive note

Indian shares closed higher on the New Year day, clawing back from losses in the first few hours, on buying trends witnessed in some financial stocks and market heavyweights, reports Reuters.

The benchmark BSE Sensex closed up 0.52 per cent at 36,254.57, while the broader NSE Nifty ended 0.44 per cent higher at 10,910.10.

HDFC Bank Ltd and Housing Development Finance Corp were the top boosts to the indexes.

An earlier report adds: Indian shares began the year on a negative note on Tuesday as investors stayed away from making bets, with the corporate earnings season slated to begin next week.

With trade optimism bringing some cheer, Indian markets posted their third consecutive annual gain in 2018 and outperformed most Asian indexes, according to Refinitiv data. However, global stock indexes ended in the red for the year.

This year is expected to be a crucial one for India as it heads into a general election that must be held by May.

"We're looking at a flattish market with a target of 10,400 - 11,000 for Nifty in the first six months. There is uncertainty with respect to global liquidity," said Dhananjay Sinha, head-Institutional Research, Economist and Strategy at Emkay Global Financial Services.