Post Session Commentary - March 4 2008

Indices closed lower on Tuesday as investors booked profits on account of weak global sentiments. Realty and banking stocks witnessed heavy selling pressure while auto stocks bucked the trend.

The Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex ended 315 points or 1.8 per cent down at 16,362.06, recovering from the low of 16,164.57.

The National Stock Exchange’s Nifty finished 82 points or 1.65 per cent lower at 4871.50. The index dropped to a low of 4812.95, intra day.

Tier II and III stocks were the worst hit. BSE Midcap Index ended 2.38 per cent lower at 7,189.87 and BSE Smallcap Index declined 3.07 per cent to 8,954.91.

ACC (down 5.49%), ITC (5.18%), DLF (5.16%), Reliance Communications (4.97%), Cipla (4.56%) and ICICI Bank (4.53%) kept the indices subdued.

On the other hand, Hindalco Industries (up 6.03%), Maruti Suzuki (2.63%), HDFC (2.48%), Grasim Industries (2.02%), Tata Consultancy Services (1.46%), Reliance Energy (1.24%) and Tata Motors (1.23%) posted smart gains.

Market breadth on BSE showed 2182 declines while 514 advances.