Mumbai, Aug 10 (IANS): The benchmark indices ended flat on Wednesday as investors remained cautious ahead of the release of US inflation data.

At close, Sensex ended down 35.78 points or 0.06 per cent at 58,817.29, while Nifty closed up 9.65 points or 0.06 per cent. About 1,538 shares advanced, 1,864 shares declined, while 122 remained unchanged on Wednesday.

Bajaj Finance, NTPC, ONGC, HCL Technologies and Adani Ports were among the major losers. BSE midcap and smallcap indices ended on flat note.

Indian markets were closed on Tuesday on account of Muharram.

"Investors were in a cautious mode in anticipation of the release of US inflation statistics, which will set the tone for the next FED policy meeting. The US CPI inflation during July is projected to remain high, in line with June inflation levels. This, along with strong job data, will compel the FED to keep taking a tough approach to rein in high inflation levels," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Asian stocks closed down, with Nikkei closing 0.65 per cent lower. The Hang Seng Index shed 1.96 per cent, while the Shanghai Composite Index sank 0.54 per cent.

Meanwhile, European stocks also opened down as investors remained cautious as they await US inflation data.