New Delhi - India's key Sensex index rose by 2.7 per cent on the first day of the new year after declining by over 50 per cent in 2008.

The 30-share sensitive Sensex index of the Bombay Stock Exchange gained 256.15 points or 2.66 per cent to close at 9903.46 points.

Thursday's performance was among the best first-day gains in percentage terms in several years - next only to an 8.81 per cent surge in the first trading session of 2000, the PTI news agency reported.

The broader 50-share Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange also rose by 2.5 per cent and ended the day's trade at 3,033.45 points.

The 2008 year was the worst ever in the history of Indian bourses with the economic slowdown pulling down the Sensex by 52.4 per cent.

This was in sharp contrast to 2007, when the bourse was the third- best performer among emerging economies, with a gain of 47.15 percent. (dpa)