Indian shares ended higher on Wednesday, underpinned by financials, after the central bank announced liquidity injection via open market bond purchase for January, and as crude prices hovered near 14-month lows. The benchmark BSE index closed 0.38 percent firmer at 36,484.33. The broader NSE index ended 0.54 percent higher at 10,967.3. Both the indexes recorded a seventh straight session of gains, with the NSE index clocking its best rally since a nine-day streak in April.
Markets received a boost after the Reserve Bank of India announced a higher-than-expected 500 billion rupees ($7.13 billion) of open market bond purchases for next month, reinforcing expectations that the central bank was turning dovish under Shaktikanta Das who was appointed as governor last week. Softer crude prices have also strengthened India's macro-economic indicators, including inflation and its trade deficit, given the South Asian nation imports some two-thirds of its oil needs.
Axis Bank Ltd and Indiabulls Housing Finance Ltd , which were among the top gainers on the NSE index, closed up 3.33 percent and 7.85 percent, respectively.