Sensex settles near day's high on intra-day rebound

After plunging sharply in opening trade, tracking weak global cues, the market kept on recovering as the day progressed on value buying coupled with short covering. It settled near the day’s high. Trading was marked by a high degree of volatility. All the indices on BSE, except the BSE IT index, settled lower. All the European indices were trading lower.

The wholesale-price-based inflation rose 4.45% in the week ended 28 July 2007 compared to 4.36% rise in the previous week.

India's industrial production in June 2007 grew at the slowest pace in eight months as interest rates at a five-year high curbed consumer spending. Production at factories, utilities and mines rose 9.8% from a year earlier, following a revised 10.9% gain in May 2007.

The BSE 30-share Sensex was down 206.83 points to 14,893.32, as per provisional closing. It opened with a sharp 466-point downward gap at 14,631.15 and slumped further to touch a low of 14,570.89. From here, it started recovering to hit a high of 14,901.31 at 15:20 IST

The S&P CNX Nifty lost 61.35 points to 4,341.85, as per provisional closing. It also recovered sharply from a low of 4,239.20

The market breadth also recovered sharply, but still was negative on BSE with 1,574 shares declining as compared to 1127 that advanced, while 58 remained unchanged.

The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 5196 crore as compared to Rs 3,790 crore by 14:30 IST.

Among the 30-member Sensex pack, 22 slipped while eight gained.

IT stocks staged a solid comeback from the day’s low. India's fourth largest software exporter Satyam Computers surged 2.33% to Rs 478 on 8.68 lakh shares. It was the top gainer from Sensex pack, recovering from a low of Rs 452.15

Infosys Technologies gained 0.72% to Rs 1949.90, off the session’s low of Rs 1872 and Wipro rose 0.51% to Rs 480.45, off the day's low of Rs 455. TCS settled 0.37% lower to Rs 1142.30, after touching a low of Rs 1050

The Indian rupee was trading at 40.63 against the US dollar, weaker compared to yesterday's (9 august 2007) close of 40.53/40.54

India’s largest listed cellular services provider Bharti Airtel plunged 3.60% to Rs 838.10, on 3.82 lakh shares. It was the top loser from the Sensex pack. Bharti Airtel added 2.1 million cellular customers in July 2007, taking its user base to 44.8 million.

India’s largest private sector company Reliance Industries (RIL) lost 1.21% to Rs 1819.80 on 9.18 lakh shares. It moved in a band of Rs 1778 and Rs 1821.80. The Egyptian government said on Thursday, 9 August 2007, that Reliance Industries (RIL) will invest $10 billion in the oil refining, petrochemical and plastic industries in Egypt.

India's largest commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors rose 0.85% to Rs 668.70. Tata Motors, India's top bus and truck maker, is looking to expand its auto sales in Southeast Asia and it plans to use Thailand as a manufacturing base.

Banking and financial shares were under selling pressure throughout the day. India’s largest housing finance company Housing Finance Development Corporation (HDFC ) slumped 3% to Rs 1955.

ICICI Bank (down 2.84% to Rs 865), HDFC Bank (down 2% to Rs 1132) and SBI (down 2.58% to Rs 1607) also slipped.

ONGC (down 2.94% to Rs 841), NTPC (down 2.68% to Rs 165.10), and Reliance Communications (down 2.41% to Rs 523.80) were the other losers from Sensex pack.

Deepak Fertilisers (down 6.69% to Rs 95.55), ICSA India (down 9.44% to Rs 1654), Max India (down 6% to Rs 208.80), Lokesh Machines (down 9.28% to Rs 101.65) were the top losers from small-cap and mid-cap basket.

Atlanta (up 10% to Rs 280.40), ANG Auto (up 10.80% to Rs 230), Orbit Corporation (up 16.56% to Rs 524.70), Educomp Solutions (up 5.55% to Rs 2620), and Falcon Tyres (up 5% to Rs 146) surged.

All the Asian indices tumbled today, 10 August 2007, following a rout in global markets as credit jitters flared up after a major French bank BNP Paribas froze three funds that invested in US subprime mortgages. Financial shares across the region were hit hard. Nikkei tumbled 2.37%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng (down 2.88%), Taiwan's Taiwan Weighted (down 2.74%), Singapore's Straits Times (down 1.58%), Shanghai Composite (down 0.10%), and South Korea's Seoul Composite (down 4.20%) plunged.

US stocks fell yesterday, 9 August 2007, on deepening fears about a spreading credit crunch. The Dow Jonex Industrial Average fell 387.18 points, or 2.83%, to 13,270.68. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 44.40 points, or 2.96%, to 1,453.09. The Nasdaq Composite index fell 56.49 points, or 2.16%, to 2,556.49.

As per provisional data, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 27.23 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of shares worth Rs 72.14 crore on Thursday, 9 August 2007.

Oil prices were steady at above $71 on Friday, 10 August 2007, as investors watched for any further signs of distress caused by the US subprime mortgage sector crisis. US crude fell 5 cents to $71.54 a barrel. London Brent crude rose 11 cents to $70.32