Rally spills over to eighth consecutive trading session

The market settled with small gains, amid mixed trend in index pivotals. The market started the day firm but slipped in the negative zone in mid-morning trade on profit booking. It staged recovery from lower level later. The market pared gains towards the close of the trading session. Some volatility was witnessed at higher levels. This is the eighth straight session of gains for the market. European and Asian markets were subdued today, 4 September 2007.

The BSE 30-share Sensex rose 43.35 points or 0.28% at 15,465.40. It opened higher at 15,482.13 and advanced further to hit a high of 15,521.48. The index also touched a low of 15,389.62. It moved in a band of 131.86 points for the day

The Sensex surged 1,301 points, or 9.18%, in eight trading sessions, from 14,163.98 on 23 August 2007 to 15,465.40 on 4 September 2007.

The S&P CNX Nifty was up 4.50 points or 0.10% at 4479.25. The Nifty September 2007 futures settled at 4434, a discount of 45.25 points as compared to spot closing

The market breadth was strong on BSE, with 1,738 shares advancing as compared to 998 that declined, while 67 remained unchanged.

The BSE Mid-Cap Index rose 0.68% to 6,765.92 while the BSE Small-Cap Index gained 0.93% to 8,270.95. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 4,999 crore as compared to Rs 4,743.66 crore on Monday, 3 September 2007. The NSE’s F&O turnover was Rs 39013.75 crore as compared to Rs 34491.99 crore on Monday, 3 September 2007.

Sectoral indices on BSE displayed mixed trend. The BSE Health Care Index (up 1.35% at 3,680.36), BSE Oil and Gas Index (up 0.40% at 8,187.54), BSE Realty index (up 1.87% to 7,462.48), BSE Capital Goods Index (up 0.32% at 13,632.61), and BSE IT Index (up 0.39% at 4,625.84) outperformed the Sensex.

However, BSE Bankex (up 0.20% at 8,006.58), BSE Consumer Durables index (down 0.24% to 4,401.53), BSE FMCG Index (down 0.44% at 1,994.24), BSE PSU index (down 0.42% to 7,194.66), BSE TecK index (down 0.11% to 3,634.83), BSE Auto Index (down 0.52% at 4,874.32) and BSE Metal Index (down 0.51% at 11,578.57), were underperformers.

From the 30-member Sensex pack, 17 declined while the rest advanced.

India’s largest private sector power utility in terms of net profit Reliance Energy soared 6.06% to Rs 824 on 23.42 lakh shares. It was the top gainer from the Sensex pack.

India’s third largest pharma company by sales Cipla advanced 4.68% to Rs 180 on 14.50 lakh shares. The stock has lost 33.46% in the past one year from Rs 258.40 on 4 September 2006 to Rs 171.95 on 3 September 2007.

India’s top private sector housing finance company in terms of net profit Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) rose 2.60% to Rs 2052.25, on reports it does not plan to cut home loan rates as of now.

India's largest engineering and construction firm by sales, Larsen & Toubro rose 1.42% to Rs 2623.75 after it received two contracts worth Rs 267 crore. The contracts have been bagged from Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and China-based Liaoning Huajin Chemical Corporation for their expansion projects.

India’s largest private sector company and oil refiner Reliance Industries (RIL) was up 0.79% to Rs 1971 on 5.45 lakh shares. RIL has reportedly expressed its interest in acquiring a 50% stake in Kenya Petroleum Refinery (KPRL). KPRL is one of Kenya's oldest refinery complexes with an annual capacity of four million tonnes.

IT pivotals were firm as rupee eased against the dollar. Infosys, India’s second largest IT services exporter by sales rose 1.51% to Rs 1890. From a recent low of Rs 1761 on 21 August 2007 the scrip climbed 5.73% to Rs 1861.95 on 3 September 2007.

India’s largest IT services provider by sales, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) gained 0.48% to Rs 1063.85 on reports it had won a multi-year deal from Swiss drug maker Roche. TCS will provide services to Roche in areas including clinical data management, clinical programming, biostatistics and drug safety support. The size of the order is not known.

However India’s third largest software company in terms of sales, Wipro slumped 2.29% to Rs 464.50 on 1.98 lakh shares. It was the top loser from Sensex pack. Satyam Computers slipped 0.26% to Rs 448.75

Rupee was hovering at 40.96 against dollar, weaker than to Monday (3 September 2007)’s close of 40.885/895.

Diversified firm Grasim Industries gained 3.30% to Rs 3032. Aditya Birla Group said after trading hours on Monday, 3 September 2007, its cement shipments rose 12.3% in August 2007 over August 2006. Aditya Birla group includes flagship Grasim Industries and UltraTech Cement.

ACC, the country’s second largest cement manufacturer rose 2.51% to Rs 1097.95 after it reported 15% rise in cement dispatches in August 2007 over August 2006.

Other cement counters, India Cements (up 7.47% to Rs 269), UltraTech Cement Company (up 3.05% to Rs 975), Birla Corporation (up 2.33% to Rs 303.10) and Ambuja Cements (up 1.53% to Rs 136.20), surged.

India's top bus and truck maker Tata Motors slipped 1.70% to Rs 691 after it reported a 0.4% fall in sales to 45,144 units in August 2007 over August 2006.

India’s top utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) was down 1.03% to Rs 714.05. As per reports, it is in advanced stages of negotiations for forging a marketing tie-up with Nissan Motor Company for the latter's small cars. Nissan would eventually make its small cars here and may decide to sell these through the widespread M&M’s dealer network.

Hindalco Industries (down 2.28% to Rs 156.75), NTPC (down 2.27% to Rs 181.15) and Bhel (down 1.90% to Rs 1904.05) were the other losers from the Sensex pack.

Take Solutions (Rs 422.65 crore), Reliance Energy (Rs 189.87 crore), IFCI (Rs 145.05 crore), Reliance Industries (Rs 107.20 crore), and Everonn Systems (Rs 97.33 crore) were among the turnover toppers on BSE.

Shares from mid-cap software sector surged on renewed buying. Take Solutions (up 10.76% to Rs 998.75), Nucleus Software Exports (up 7% to Rs 377), Mastek (up 7.70% to Rs 282.70), Polaris Software (up 0.30% to Rs 119.65), Prithvi Info (up 5.80% to Rs 290.90), and Subex System (up 2.57% to Rs 570), edged higher.

Among side counters, National Oxygen (up 20% to Rs 62.10), Alchemist (up 19.98% to Rs 124), Noida Toll Bridge (up 10% to Rs 29.70), Spentex Industries (up 19.98% to Rs 32.45), and Aksh Optifibres (up 19.90% to Rs 49.40) surged.

Superhouse Leather (down 7.28% to Rs 49), Monnet Sugar (down 6.82% to Rs 33.50), Dhunseri Tea (down 6.79% to Rs 70), Alfred Herbert (down 6.23% to Rs 182), and Vaibhav Gems (down 5.93% to Rs 212.65), declined.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) slipped 1.56% to Rs 306 after it turned ex-dividend, for a dividend of Rs 10 per share. Indraprastha Gas declined 1.33% to Rs 118.95 after it turned ex-dividend, for a dividend of Rs 3 per share from today. Both these shares have face value of Rs 10 each.

Hindoostan Spinning & Weaving Mills jumped 5% at Rs 53.45 on reports that the firm has sold 8 acres of its defunct mill located near the Siddhivinayak temple at Prabhadevi, Mumbai for Rs 350 crore to Mumbai-based builder Akruti Nirman. Akruti Nirman will develop a high-end residential project on this property.

Educomp Solutions slipped 1.09% to Rs 2870. It entered into a partnership with Microsoft to make available its graphical curriculum content on the Microsoft XBOX360 platform.

Kernex Microsystem (India) jumped 5% to Rs 326 on rumors that it may bag a 6-year long railways contract worth Rs 2,000 crore in joint venture with Konkan Railways.

Parenteral Drugs (India) surged 3.07% to Rs 194.55 after board its board recommended a 1:1 bonus issue. The company also said it proposes to issue equity shares on rights basis. Terms of the right issue will be finalized in due course.

Valecha Engineering rose 1.05% to Rs 289 after it fixed 5 October 2007 as the record date for the issue of bonus shares in the ratio 1:2.

Onward Technologies gained 5.06% to Rs 40.80 after signing agreement with John Deere India to set up dedicated engineering design services centre in Pune.

Shipping Corporation of India rose 1.77% to Rs 195. The Baltic Exchange's Dry freight Index, which gauges the strength of seaborne dry commodities trade, set a record for a third consecutive week on Monday, 3 September 2007, on strong raw materials demand, buoyant economic growth and port congestion at key export centres

Textile firm Siyaram Silk Mills rose 4.12% to Rs 116.80 after it said during trading hours today, 4 September 2007, its board approved the sale of two properties near Mumbai.

Cable maker Paramount Communications rose 4.33% to Rs 34.90. The stock came off day’s high of Rs 37. The company before trading hours today, 4 September 2007, said it had acquired UK's AEI Cable.

Godrej Consumer Products gained 1.06% to Rs 138.15 on reports that the company may acquire the consumer products business of South Africa-based Enaleni Pharmaceuticals. It has a market capitalisation of approximately 1.5 billion rands and is listed on Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

Biocon advanced 2.83% to Rs 459.95 after its shareholders approved divestment of the enzymes business of the company.

Siyaram Silk Mills jumped 5.22% to Rs 118 after its board approved the sale of two properties in Maharastra. One of the two properties is located at Raigad, Maharastra and the other one is at Thane, Mumbai.

West Coast Paper Mills rose 1.49% to Rs 440.50 after it fixed 2 November 2007 as the record date for the purpose of splitting of the equity shares of face value of Rs 10 each into five equity shares of Rs 2 each.

Dollex Industries dropped 2.50% to Rs 102 after the company said during trading hours on Tuesday, 4 September 2007, it has bought an integrated sugar complex from Maharashtra state government for Rs 14 crore and plans to invest Rs 10 crore in the unit over one year.

European markets which opened after Indian market, were trading mixed. Key benchmark indices in London (down 0.22% to 6,301.50) and France (down 0.29% to 5,635.19) slipped. However Germany’s DAX rose marginally by 0.03% to 7,650.98

Most of the Asian markets closed lower today, 4 September 2007. Japan's Nikkei (down 0.63% at 16,420.47), Hang Seng (down 0.08% at 23,886.07) Shanghai Composite (down 0.51% to 5,294.90), Singapore's Straits Times (down 0.30% to 3,376.06), South Korea's Seoul Composite (down 0.36% to 1,875.05), and Taiwan Weighted (down 0.63% at 8,922.68) slipped.

US markets remained closed yesterday, 3 September 2007 for Labor Day holiday.

Crude oil paused near a four-week high in New York on signs a hurricane in the Caribbean may weaken and break up without disrupting production in the Gulf of Mexico. Crude oil for October 2007 delivery was at $74.13 a barrel, up 9 cents, in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.