Sensex likely to trade in 16,000-20,000

"We expect the market to trade with a negative bias in the first half and to move up towards the end of the year. So expect the markets to be in a range of 16,000-20,000 for the current year," Rajen Shah, Chief Investment Officer, Angel Broking, said at a seminar on Investment Opportunities jointly organised by Angel Broking and Bombay Stock Exchange here.

The seminar was a part of Angel Broking and BSE`s ongoing countrywide initiative on investor education.

Retail investors need to be cautious and disciplined in stock picking. Focus should be on value investing in companies with good managements and businesses, Shah said.

Speaking on the occasion Dinesh Thakkar, Chairman and Managing Director, Angel, said, "given our retail-centric orientation, we are confident that through this alliance with BSE, Angel Broking can further leverage its strong research strength to reach out to a wide spectrum of Investors."

So far in 2011, the Indian markets have been on a downward trend, shaving off almost 10 per cent, on back of persistent inflationary pressures, which are expected to result in slowdown in the economic growth.