Nifty, Sensex Start 2019 On A Cautious Note

Domestic 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, the markets posted their third consecutive annual gain in 2018 and outperformed most Asian indices, according to Refinitiv data. However, global stock indices ended in the red for the year.

This year is expected to be a crucial one for the country 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.

The Reserve Bank of India has given a fair and positive view in its financial stability report, he added.

The central bank said on Monday the proportion of commercial lenders' non-performing assets may fall slightly to 10.3 per cent by March, thanks to measures including the creation of a bankruptcy code. At 11:40 am, the broader NSE Nifty was trading 29.40 points lower at 10,833.15. The benchmark BSE Sensex was down 88.52 points - or 0.26 per cent at 35,979.81.

Financial and consumer stocks weighed on the indices. HDFC Bank Ltd and ITC Ltd were among the top drags, down about 0.5 per cent each.

Metal stocks, which were hit through 2018 on trade war concerns, also fell. Hindalco Industries Ltd and JSW Steel Ltd were down about 1 per cent each.

Sales data for automakers such as Maruti Suzuki India Ltd disappointed investors, sending the stock down 0.5 per cent.