Sensex, Nifty at record closing highs

The market kept on cruising ahead as the day progressed with the rally getting intense in the last one hour of trade. Index pivotals were in strong demand, with Reliance Industries, Bajaj Auto, Tata Motors and Grasim at the forefront. Both the key indices on BSE and NSE struck all-time highs.

Today’s rally was broad based with stocks from various sectors and market capitalisation participating in the rally. Auto, capital goods, IT, oil & gas stocks logged smart gains. However, real-estate stocks cooled off on profit booking. Positive cues from the global markets boosted the sentiment further.

The BSE 30-share Sensex surged 248.96 points, or 1.63%, to 15,550.13, an all-time closing high. It opened higher at 15,357.38 and kept on hitting new highs at regular intervals, with the last being 15,593.31 at 15:27 IST. The barometer index’s previous lifetime high was 15,440.20, struck just about two days ago: Tuesday, 17 July 2007.

The S&P CNX Nifty also touched an all-time high of 4,573, surpassing its previous lifetime high of 4,550.25 on 17 July 2007. It settled with a 62.55-point, or 1.39%, spurt at 4,562.10, an all-time closing high. The Nifty July futures settled at 4,553.65, a discount of 8.45 points compared to spot closing

The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 5,699 crore as against Rs 5,750 crore on Wednesday 19 July 2007

The NSE F&O turnover was Rs 45,874.91 crore as compared to Rs 45,052.64 crore on Wednesday 19 July 2007

The market breadth was strong on BSE with 1,536 shares advancing as compared to 1,157 that declined, while 70 remained unchanged

The BSE Mid-Cap Index settled at 6,827.74, up 52 points, or 0.8%, while the BSE Small-Cap Index rose up 74 points, or 0.9%, to 8,258.52

Besides good corporate earnings in a fast growing economy, the rise in the value of the Indian rupee against the dollar has attracted foreign funds. FII inflow in the first half of July 2007 reached Rs 19,334.30 crore (till 17 July 2007). The large inflows this month are also due to FII subscription to IPOs of DLF and ICICI Bank.

Receding fears of rising interest rates have aided the surge on the domestic bourses over the past few days. Inflation is at a little above 4%.

In today's trade, among the Sensex pack, 26 advanced while only four of them declined.

Shares from the auto pack dominated the list of gainers, on easing worries of interest-rate hike. The BSE Auto Index settled at 5,147.58 up 1.89%, from its previous close.

Auto companies derive 50%-75% of their sales from borrowed funds. Tata Motors, India's top auto maker by sales, jumped 6.31% to Rs 790 on reports it is evaluating a bid to buy luxury British car brands Jaguar and Land Rover from struggling US car maker Ford. A successful bid for Jaguar and Land Rover, which have been underperforming ever since Ford acquired them seven years ago, may cost over Rs 6,000 crore. It was the top gainer from the Sensex pack, with 3.64 lakh shares changing hands on the counter.

Tractor major Mahindra & Mahindra advanced 2.30% to Rs 823.20 on reports that it is also interested in Land Rover.

India's second largest two-wheeler maker Bajaj Auto surged 5.06% to Rs 2,398 after a domestic brokerage initiated as 'outperformer' rating with target price of Rs 2,725.

India's largest private sector company Reliance Industries (RIL) extended gains to strike a fresh an all- time of Rs 1,925. The index heavyweight galloped 4.34% to Rs 1,899, on 11.04 lakh shares. The Bombay High Court on Wednesday, 18 July 2007, refused to stay an interim order barring RIL from selling gas from its KG basin field to any other firm except Anil Ambani's Reliance Natural Resources (RNRL) and state-run NTPC. A division bench of Justices J N Patel and Ahmed Sayed also adjourned by eight weeks the hearing on RIL's appeal against the previous interim order.

The court, however, said the government can go ahead with the process of fixing of gas price as per the contract for the field, without any prejudice to either party.

Led by RIL, the BSE Oil and Gas Index jumped 2.91% to 8,168.35. It also struck an all-time high of 8,219.56. Reliance Petroleum (up 4.20% to Rs 117.75), GAIL India (up 1.81% to Rs 337.10) and ONGC (up 0.39% to Rs 895) advanced from the oil & gas sector.

Cement stocks, riding on the infrastructure boom, advanced. Grasim, the AV Birla group diversified major deriving major revenue from cement, surged 3.94% to Rs 3,010 after striking an all-time high of Rs 3,024.80 in early trade.

Other cement stocks JK Lakshmi Cement (up 4.30% to Rs 143.10) and UltraTech Cement Company (up 1.35% to Rs 969.90) also edged higher.

ACC, the second largest cement company according to market captialisation, saw high volatility today on the eve of its results. The stock slipped sharply to a low of Rs 1,119, after the company said its net profit fell 13.5% to Rs 351 crore in Q1 June 2007 over Q1 June 2006. However, it rallied sharply from the low to strike a high of Rs 1,160 in late trade. The stock settled with a 2.29% gain at Rs 1,159.

South-east Asia's largest engineering and construction firm Larsen & Toubro rose 2.25% to Rs 2,382 after it posted a 139.83% spurt in net profit to Rs 376.85 crore in Q1 June 2007 over Q1 June 2006. Sales moved up 29.57% to Rs 4,505.21 crore.

State-run engineering major Bhel rose 0.71% to Rs 1643.10. Led by L&T and Bhel, the BSE Capital Goods Index advanced 1.6% at 12,876.18.

Telecom pivotals advanced on renewed buying. India's second-largest mobile services firm Reliance Communications (RCom) advanced 3.14% to Rs 585, after striking an all-time high of Rs 586.90. The company has sold a 5% stake in its telecom tower business, valued at Rs 27000 crore, Chairman Anil Ambani said on Thursday, 19 July 2007. It has placed the 5% stake with a handful of leading investors in the United States, Europe and Asia, for Rs 1400 crore.

RCom is also evaluating a possible initial public offering or strategic equity placements for the tower business, Ambani said.

Top cellular services provider Bharti Airtel gained 1.97% to Rs 900.50, after striking an all-time high of Rs 902. Bharti Enterprises, the parent of Bharti Airtel said on Wednesday, 18 July 2007, one of its group companies had bought a 4.99% in the telecom firm from Vodafone. The purchase took Bharti's voting interest in Bharti Airtel to more than 50%.

IT stocks advanced on momentum buying in anticipation of global merger & acquisition (M&A) activity. Led by Infosys, the BSE IT Index gained 1.5% to 4,956.31.

The second-largest IT services provider Infosys Technologies surged 2.46% to Rs 1,995 on market talks that it is close to acquiring the finance and accounting BPO arm of Philips Global. The BPO arm is said to have assured revenues of $200 million spread over five year. Infosys had gained in recent times on market rumors that it has bid for Capgemini, a European IT services provider.

Shares of third-ranked software services provider Wipro recovered from a low of Rs 494, and was up 0.19% to Rs 505.40. The company posted before market hours today, 19 July 2007, a lower-than-expected 16% rise in net profit to Rs 710 crore in Q1 June 2007 over Q1 June 2006.

Wipro added 39 clients in the June 2007 quarter. It has forecast its IT services revenue would rise 32% to $777 million in Q2 September 2007, up from $589 million in Q2 September 2006.

Wipro’s net profit declined 18% and net sales dipped 2.86% over the March 2007 quarter.

India's largest IT service provider TCS rose 0.56% to Rs 1,174, while Satyam Computers, the fourth largest, was up 1.2% to Rs 487.40

The Indian rupee slipped on Thursday, 19 July 2007 as rising oil prices spurred oil companies to buy dollars, though dealers expected capital flows into the fast-growing economy to bolster the local unit. In early trade, the rupee was at 40.43/44 per dollar, easing from Wednesday's 40.4150/4250, and drifting further from a nine-year peak of 40.28 hit in late May.

Top drug maker by sales Ranbaxy Laboratories rose 1% to Rs 350.50 after it today reported a 117% surge in net profit in Q2 June 2007 to Rs 263 crore over Q2 June 2006.

Leading aluminuim and copper maker Hindalco Industries rose 0.76% to Rs 185.70 after it announced an agreement with Canada-based Alcan to acquire its participating interest in the Utkal Alumina project in Orissa. The conclusion of the transaction will mark the complete exit of Alcan from the Utkal project

Reliance Energy lost 0.69% to Rs 684 and was the top loser from the Sensex pack. About 9.84 lakh shares changed hands on the counter on BSE.

Cipla (down 0.56% to Rs 205.15), Hindustan Unilever (down 0.33% to Rs 198.30) and Tata Steel (down 0.09% to Rs 682.10) were the other losers from Sensex pack.

Spice Communications, a telecom services provider, settled at Rs 60.65, a premium of 45% over the IPO price of Rs 46. The scrip debuted at Rs 55.75. It touched a high of Rs 67.05 and a low of Rs 48.50 during the day. On BSE, the counter saw huge volume of 11.71 crore shares.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises, the second largest media company by market capitalisation, rose 2.57% to Rs 335 on huge volumes of 80.79 lakh shares after three block deals of 23.34 lakh shares each were strcuk in the counter at an average price of Rs 328 per share on BSE in opening trade.

Bank stocks advanced on renewed buying, taking the banking sectror index BSE Bankex to an all-time high of 8,487.57. The Bankex settled with gain of 0.98% at 8,453.97. Banking shares gained as fears of interest rate hike in near future receded. Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 4.18% to Rs 737), Punjab National Bank (up 3.77% to Rs 582), State Bank of India (up 1.34% to Rs 1596), and ICICI Bank (up 0.96% to Rs 991.85) edged higher from the banking pack.

DLF, the country’s largest real-estate developer, was up 0.02% to Rs 645.50. It today posted a net profit of Rs 579.27 crore on revenue of Rs 1,207.11 crore in Q1 June 2007. Figures for the corresponding period were not available.

The BSE Real Estate index was down 0.29% to 8,054.54 and was the worst performer among the sectoral indices on BSE. The stocks declined on profit booking after the recent rally, which led the BSE Real Estate index gain 3.71% to 8077.67, on 18 July 2007, since its launch on 10 July 2007. Indiabulls Real Estate (down 1.42% to Rs 573.20), Unitech (down 1.12% to Rs 543), and Sobha Developers (down 1.07% to Rs 914.10) declined.

Neyveli Lignite surged 17.09% to Rs 78.45 ahead of its Q1 June 2007 results, which are due tomorrow, 20 July 2007.

Infotech Enterprises plunged 9.74% to Rs 337 after its net profit dipped 60.95% in Q1 June 2007 on a sequential basis to Rs 8.16 crore over Q4 March 2007. Sales fell 0.35% to Rs 96.24 crore.

Research focused pharma firm Glenmark Pharma rose 2.4% to Rs 719 after the company said it bought two new biological entities of Canada's Chromos Molecular Systems Inc. The financial details of the transaction were not announced. Last month, the company announced a stock-split to from Rs 2 per share to Re 1 per share. The stock has witnessed a steady uptrend over the past few days. From Rs 650.70 on 28 June 2007, it has risen 10.5%

IDBI lost 3.42% to Rs 111.65 and IFCI shed 1.33% to Rs 55.85 after the National Stock Exchange barred building fresh positions in their derivatives.

Telecom software provider Tanla Solutions was locked at the 5% upper limit of Rs 496.05. After trading hours on Wednesday, 18 July 2007, Tanla Solutions reported a 2.3% fall to Rs 33.25 crore in consolidated net profit in Q1 June 2007 over Q4 March 2007. Consolidated revenue rose 14.6% to Rs 89.44 crore.

VST Tillers, the Bangalore-based farm equipment manufacturer of power tillers and low horse power tractors, jumped 13.63% to Rs 210.50. The stock has surged in the past one month. From Rs 135 on 13 June 2007, it has risen 55.9%.

Number two credit rating agency ICRA gained 7.51% to Rs 1,148.50. The stock had surged 5.1% to record closing high of Rs 1,068.30 on Wednesday, 18 July 2007, after it signed an initial agreement with state-run Indian Bank to assign ratings to small-scale industries and small and medium enterprises that are borrowers of the bank.

Software firm Cambridge Technology Enterprises jumped 20% to Rs 55.50 after the company’s board approved the acquisition of US-based Reilly & Associates Inc. subject to conditions.

Engineering firm Texmaco rose 8% to Rs 1220 after it reported a 153.8% surge in net profit to Rs 11.37 crore in Q1 June 2007 over Q1 June 2006.

Construction firm Hindustan Dorr-Oliver rose 2.74% to Rs 129.50 after it bagged an order worth Rs 30 crore from Vedanta Alumina.

Easun Reyrolle (ERL), offering power system protection, rose 5% to Rs 1,136.45 ahead of the results of the postal ballot of shareholders for 5-for-1 stock split.

West Coast Paper Mills rose 10.55% to Rs 440 after the company said its board would meet on 26 July 2007 to consider a stock-split.

Diesel engine maker Kirloskar Oil Engines surged 7.41% to Rs 357.25 after the company’s board approved a liberal 1:1 bonus.

Jindal Steel and Power (JSPL) rose 5.11% to Rs 4,025 on reports that it is to sign a contract to exploit the vast El Mutun iron ore deposits in Bolivia. As per the reports, JSPL will sign a contract to exploit the vast El Mutun iron ore deposits in Bolivia.The deal sets out an investment of $2.1 billion to mine iron ore used to make steel at the site in eastern Bolivia.

Asian markets gained today, 19 July 2007, with Japanese shares rebounding on automakers such as Toyota Motor Corp. and Suzuki Motor Corp. despite reports they will temporarily halt production because of a disruption in key parts supplies. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.56% to 18,115.95.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng (up 0.76% at 23,016.20) and Singapore's Straits Times (up 0.58% at 3,604.62) gained. Shanghai Composite lost 0.44% to 3,916.06

All the European markets were trading with gains.

US stocks fell on Wednesday on deepening concerns that a crisis in lending could spread and a warning from the Federal Reserve chairman Ben Benanke that weakness in housing could hurt economic growth for some time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 53.33 points to 13,918.22. The tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index shed 12.80 points to 2,699.49.

Oil prices jumped more than a dollar on Wednesday, 19 July 2007, after a steep drop in US gasoline stocks fanned concerns the world's top consumer could face a shortfall during the peak summer driving season. Global benchmark London Brent crude settled up $1.23 at $76.76 a barrel on Wednesday.