Market posts third straight weekly loss

Weak global markets and heavy selling by foreign institutional investors led the market suffer losses for third straight week. Lack of buying at lower levels accentuated the fall. Volatility was high in the truncated week with only three trading sessions. The market remains closed on Thursday (20 March 2008) on account of Id-E-Milad and on Friday (21 March 2008) on account of Good Friday.

The BSE Sensex lost 765.69 points or 4.85% to 14,994.83 in the week ended Wednesday, 19 March 2008. The S&P CNX Nifty slipped 171.85 points or 3.62% to 4573.95 in the week.

The BSE Mid-Cap index lost 619.35 points or 9.40% to 5,964.10 for the week ended Wednesday, 19 March 2008. The BSE Small-Cap index slumped 857.30 points or 10.61% to 7,222.20 in the week.

The BSE Sensex is down 6,211.94 points or 29.29% from its all time high of 21,206.77 hit on 10 January 2008.

Trading for the week began on a bearish note as global markets suffered setback with the benchmark index BSE Sensex posting its biggest ever single-day point fall on Monday 17 March 2008. Sensex lost 951.03 points or 6.03% at 14,809.49 and the broader based S&P CNX Nifty tumbled 242.70 points or 5.11% at 4,503.10 on that day.

On Tuesday, 18 March 2008, the market registered small gains in highly choppy trade. The 30-share BSE Sensex rose 23.97 points or 0.16% at 14,833.46 and the broader based S&P CNX Nifty ended up 29.9 points or 0.66% at 4,533. Higher advance tax paid by top corporates in the fourth installment of 15 March 2008, indicating robust Q4 March 2008 results provided support to the market.

The market pared most of its early gains on Wednesday, 19 March 2008, as selling pressure emerged at higher levels. The market registered modest gains on that day. The 30-share BSE Sensex rose 161.37 points or 1.09% at 14,994.83. The broader based S&P CNX Nifty was up 40.95 points or 0.90% at 4,573.95. The market rose as fears of a global turmoil in credit markets eased after a steep 0.75% interest rate cut by the US Federal Reserve and following better-than-expected results from two major investment banks -- Goldman Sachs Group and Lehman Brothers Holdings.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 15,892.27 crore in the calendar year 2008 so far till Tuesday, 18 March 2008. Domestic mutual funds, on the other hand, pumped Rs 6,638.30 crore during the same period.

India’s largest private sector company in terms of market capitalisation and oil refiner Reliance Industries declined 9.14% to Rs 2159.05 in the week. The company has paid advance tax of Rs 443 crore in Q4 March 2008 as against Rs 118 crore paid in Q4 March 2007.

India’s largest engineering and construction firm by sales Larsen & Toubro (L&T) lost 3.44% to Rs 2839 in the week. L&T has paid Rs 170 crore as advance tax in the fourth installment this fiscal as against Rs 80 crore for the last quarter of the previous fiscal.

India's second largest power utility by revenue Reliance Energy (REL) tumbled 9.17% to Rs 1207.50 in the week. As per reports, the company is close to inking an agreement with Indiabulls Real Estate (IBREL) to jointly develop a 6,000-acre multi-product special economic zone (SEZ) in Maharashtra’s Raigad district.

India’s second largest telecom services provider by sales Reliance Communications (RCom) slipped 6.14% to Rs 506.45. The company is reportedly planning to acquire a European WiMax operator in a $300-400 million deal.

India’s largest private sector bank by net profit ICICI Bank slumped 12.90% to Rs 766.35 in the week. The company has paid Rs 250 crore as advance tax in Q4 March 2008 as against Rs 125 crore in Q4 March 2007.

India’s largest commercial bank by net profit State Bank of India (SBI) was down 11.34% to Rs 1602.85 in the week. SBI has paid Rs 1,148 crore advance tax in Q4 March 2008 as against Rs 690 crore in Q4 March 2007.

India’s largest truck maker by sales Tata Motors rose 5.55% to Rs 650.45 in the week. Tata Motors' advance tax outgo declined to Rs 75 crore in Q4 March 2008 compared to Rs 190 crore advance tax it paid in Q4 March 2007.

The world’s sixth largest steel maker Tata Steel declined 16.85% to Rs 637.30 in the week. The company paid advance tax of Rs 300 crore in Q4 March h 2008 compared to Rs 350 crore in Q4 March 2007.

Among the side counters, Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals (down 48.66% to Rs 116.15), Bajaj Holdings & Investments (down 69.22% to Rs 644.15), and Yes Bank (down 26.52% to Rs 137.15), slumped.

The United Progressive Alliance-Left Committee on the Indo-US civil nuclear cooperation on Monday, 17 March 2008, felt that further discussions were needed on the draft India-specific safeguards agreement that was negotiated with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The next meeting of the committee will be held in April 2008.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram said on Monday, 17 March 2008, there is tremendous pressure on the government to fight inflation. The government's intention is to ensure and make all efforts to sustain growth of more than 8% and close to 9% in 2007/08, Chidambaram added.

On the global front, the fifth-largest US investment bank Bear Stearns said on Friday, 14 March 2008, its liquidity position had deteriorated significantly and a cash crunch forced it to turn to the Federal Reserve and JPMorgan Chase for emergency funds. JPMorgan said on Sunday, 16 March 2008, it would buy Bear Stearns in an all-stock deal, and that the Fed would fund up to $30 billion of Bear Stearns' less liquid assets.