Sensex ends almost unchanged

The market ended almost unchanged after seeing range-bound movement throughtout the day today, 14 August 2007. US stocks had also closed without much movement yesterday, 13 August 2007.

Asian indices were trading on a mixed note today, 14 August 2007. European indices were also trading mixed after opening lower today

Global markets, meanwhile, are watching with concern for cues from hedge funds. 15 August 2007 is the last day of the 45-day notice period required for investors to withdraw money from many hedge funds across the world for the current July-September 2007 quarter.

The BSE 30-share Sensex was down marginally by 0.77 points to 15,016.44, as per provisonal close. It had opened higher at 15,066.71 and climbed up to a high of 15,069.64. But from here, the index had started declining and touched a low of 14,946.66 at 13:12 IST. It recovered later from that low.

It oscillated in a narrow range of 105 points for the day

The S&P CNX Nifty rose 1.45 points to 4,375, as per provisonal close

The market breadth was strong on BSE with 1,580 shares advancing as compared to 1,113 that declined, while 88 remained unchanged.

Among the 30-member Sensex pack, 16 declined while the rest of them gained.

NTPC, the country’s largest power generation firm, rose 3.10% to Rs 173 on high volumes of 18.76 lakh shares. It was the top gainer from the Sensex pack. It struck an all-time high of Rs 176.80 in intra-day trade. Late last week, NSE decided to add NPTC in S&P CNX Nifty index in place of Dabur India from 24 September 2007.

State Bank of India (SBI), the country’s largest bank, moved up 0.10% to Rs 1614.70 on its plans to mop up nearly Rs 180000 crore over the next five years, including a Rs 14500-crore public offer this fiscal.

HDFC Bank (up 1.26% to Rs 1149.90), ONGC (up 1.99% to Rs 860) and Hindalco Industries (up 0.92% to Rs 153.90) were the other gainers from the Sensex pack.

India’s largest private sector company and oil refiner Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 0.45% to Rs 1837.10 on 4.47 lakh shares. It moved in a range of Rs 1815 and Rs 1842. As per reports RIL has received clearance from West Bengal's Food Processing and Horticulture department for its agri-retail business in the state.

ACC, the country’s second largest cement producer, slipped 2.40% to Rs 988 on 2.01 lakh shares. It was the top loser from the Sensex pack.

MNC associate FMCG giant Hindustan Unilever declined 1.55% to Rs 200.40 on profit booking after rallying 4% to Rs 203.50 yesterday, 13 August 2007. According to AC Nielsen's retail panel, HUL’s market share in the instant coffee market rose from 40.7% in the March 2007 to 47.4% in the June 2007 quarter. In fabric wash too, HUL's share in the June 2007 quarter went up to 37.8% from 36.4% in the preceding quarter. Also, HUL's share in shampoos increased from 46.9% to 47.5%.

HDFC (down 1.85% to Rs 1947) and Grasim (down 1.92% to Rs 2880.25) were the other losers from the Sensex pack.

Omnitech InfoSolutions was trading at Rs 164.55 on BSE, a premium of 56.71% over the IPO price of Rs 105. It listed at Rs 183.75 on BSE, and hit a low and high of Rs 155 and 183.75, respectively. About 89.92 lakh shares were traded on the counter on BSE. The company had fixed the issue price at the top end of the Rs 90-Rs 105 price band. Omnitech InfoSolutions IPO ended on 25 July 2007 with 61.84 times subscription.

Asian indices were mixed note today, 14 August 2007, after wavering around the previous session's closing levels during early trading. Nikkei 225 (up 0.27%), Shanghai Composite (up 1.09%), Singapore's Straits Times (up 0.18%), and Hang Seng (up 0.53%) gained

South Korea's Seoul Composite (down 1.70%) and Taiwan Weighted (down 0.31%), slipped.

US shares closed marginally lower yesterday, 13 August 2007. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 3.01 points, or 0.02%, to 13,236.53. Broader stock indicators were also down. The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 0.72 points, or 0.05%, to 1,452.92, and the Nasdaq Composite index retreated 2.65 points, or 0.10%, to 2,542.24.

As per provisional data, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 559.58 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of shares worth Rs 137.76 crore on Monday, 13 August 2007.

US crude oil was little changed on Tuesday, 14 August 2007, after managing a slight gain a day ago, supported by central bank cash injections into the global financial system and storms brewing in the Atlantic basin. US crude oil futures slipped 7 cents to $71.55 a barrel. London's Brent crude fell 8 cents to $70.15 a barrel.