Market may extend gains

The initial batch of Q4 March 2008 results have been good with the exception of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). ICICI Bank on Saturday, 26 April 2008, reported 39% growth in net profit to Rs 1149.84 crore on 22.3% growth in total income to Rs 10390.92 crore in Q4 March 2008 over Q4 March 2007.

After witnessing a battering in the last three months, the market has staged a comeback in the past few days on the back of good Q4 results and on firm global markets. Buying by domestic institutions has supported the market. The BSE Sensex gained 2316.49 points or 15.64% to 17,125.98 on 25 April 2008 from a recent low of 14,809.49 touched on 17 March 2008. However, it is still off 4080.79 points or 19.24% from its all time high of 21,206.77 hit on 10 January 2008.

The next two days may see the market remain in a wait and watch mode because of important events. RBI is set to unveil annual monetary policy review on Tuesday, 29 April 2008. Given that the high inflation, the central bank may hike key rates. The stock market has factored in a 25 basis points hike in short term rates by RBI.

Meanwhile, the two-day discussion on Finance Bill 2008-09 begins in Lok Sabha today. The Finance Bill will be passed in Lok Sabha tomorrow, 29 April 2008.

As per provisional data, FIIs bought shares worth a net Rs 313.09 crore on Friday, 25 April 2008. Domestic funds sold shares worth a net Rs 75.47 crore on that day.

FIIs were net buyers of Rs 1,222.79 crore in the futures & options segment on Friday. According to data released by the NSE, FIIs were net buyers of index futures to the tune of Rs 672.32 crore and bought index options worth Rs 452.66 crore. They were net buyers of stock futures to the tune of Rs 53.64 crore and bought stock options worth Rs 44.16 crore

Meanwhile, good news for India is that as per the latest 2008 US-India Business Council (USIBC) survey, India is, and will continue to be, a premier destination for investment by US firms, with a large number of respondents rating future economic growth in India as highly sustainable. USIBC, formed in 1975 at the request of the Government of India and the US Government to advance US-India commercial ties, is hosted under the aegis of the US Chamber of Commerce. The US Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 rose on Friday, 25 April 2008, after signs that American Express Co was holding its own amid the economic slowdown, but Microsoft Corp's weak profit forecast pulled down the Nasdaq. American Express said its quarterly profit fell, but the results beat expectations and the company affirmed its full-year earnings forecast, lifting its shares 5.7% and helping to boost the Dow. Higher oil prices underpinned the market's rise by lifting shares of oil services companies nearly 2% after a cargo ship chartered by the US military fired warning shots at two small boats in the Gulf.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 42.91 points, or 0.33%, to end at 12,891.86. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 9.02 points, or 0.65%, to 1,397.84. But the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 5.99 points, or 0.25%, to 2,422.93.

Asian stocks were mostly in green today. Key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan were up by between 0.07% to 1.27%.