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Tuesday, March 03, 2009
BSE Bulk Deals to Watch - March 3 2009
Deal Date Scrip Code Company Client Name Deal Type * Quantity Price **
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT MARWADI SHARES AND FINANCE LIMITED B 77795 124.98
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT OPG SECURITIES P LTD B 696127 128.24
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT JUGALKISHOREMODI B 63465 127.56
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT NIRMAN MANAGEMENT SERVICES PVT LTD B 93282 110.05
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT H.J. SECURITIES PVT. LTD. B 268183 130.22
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT MARWADI SHARES AND FINANCE LIMITED S 77795 122.40
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT OPG SECURITIES P LTD S 693026 128.64
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT JUGALKISHOREMODI S 63465 127.94
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT NIRMAN MANAGEMENT SERVICES PVT LTD S 150520 124.89
3/3/2009 533055 EDSERV SOFT H.J. SECURITIES PVT. LTD. S 268083 129.41
3/3/2009 511092 JMD TELEFILM MANISHA YOGESH GALA B 15000 28.15
3/3/2009 511092 JMD TELEFILM JINAY MANSUKH GALA B 15000 28.15
3/3/2009 511092 JMD TELEFILM MILANDEBI PRASADMUKHERJEE S 6797 28.15
3/3/2009 511092 JMD TELEFILM SUSMITA KUMAR S 23203 28.15
3/3/2009 511728 KZLEASING KARAN MAHESHKUMAR HADVANI B 15823 57.71
3/3/2009 511728 KZLEASING JYOTIKABEN MAHESHBHAI HADVANI B 17000 58.10
3/3/2009 504864 ORISA SP IRS NISHU FINLEASE PVT LTD B 345862 342.85
3/3/2009 504864 ORISA SP IRS SOROS FUND ACCOUNT QUANTUM M LTD S 315043 342.85
3/3/2009 590077 RANKLIN SOLU GARIKIPATY S V B 26255 19.10
3/3/2009 522296 SS FORG ENG. PRARTHANA T. BRAHMBHATT B 57400 15.00
3/3/2009 524542 SUKHJIT ST C INDER KRISHAN SARDANA B 55165 91.79
3/3/2009 524542 SUKHJIT ST C SHYAM MANOHAR JINDAL S 54000 91.80
3/3/2009 504605 UNIABEX AL P MONEYBEE SECURITIES PVT.LTD B 25000 69.55
3/3/2009 504605 UNIABEX AL P DHIREN S. SHAH S 25000 69.55
3/3/2009 531249 WELL PACK PA GANDHI MANISHA NAVNEETLAL B 32208 76.80
3/3/2009 531249 WELL PACK PA SAMPATRAY BHANDARI HUF S 40000 76.81
NSE Bulk Deal Watch - March 3 2009
Date,Symbol,Security Name,Client Name,Buy/Sell,Quantity Traded,Trade Price / Wght. Avg. Price,Remarks
03-MAR-2009,ALPHAGEO,Alphageo (India) Limited,VINTAGE CAPITAL MARKETS LTD,BUY,34500,78.22,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,A TO Z STOCK TRADE PRIVATE LIMITED,BUY,71689,131.19,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,AMBIT SECURITIES BROKING PVT. LTD.,BUY,118519,127.30,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,BP FINTRADE PRIVATE LIMITED,BUY,166557,124.42,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,C D INTEGRATED SERVICES LTD,BUY,63303,127.29,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,GHALLA BHANSALI STOCK BROKERS PVT. LTD.,BUY,68829,130.08,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,HARBUX SINGH SIDHU,BUY,69112,119.48,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,KAUSHIK SHAH SHARES & SECURITIES PVT LTD,BUY,223562,123.26,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,LATIN MANHARLAL SECURITIES PVT. LTD.,BUY,184605,128.04,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,MANIPUT INVESTMENTS PVT LTD,BUY,174280,129.91,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,MARWADI SHARES AND FINANCE LIMITED,BUY,98926,127.15,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,NIRMAN MANAGEMENT SERVICES,BUY,202155,113.62,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,OM INVESTMENTS,BUY,81087,128.30,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,PRASHANT JAYANTILAL PATEL,BUY,99007,128.70,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,R BABY,BUY,120461,127.55,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,R.M. SHARE TRADING PVT LTD,BUY,71270,129.86,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,SALASAR STOCK BROKING LTD.,BUY,46673,126.06,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,TRANSGLOBAL SECURITIES LTD.,BUY,76588,126.63,-
03-MAR-2009,EDUCOMP,Educomp Solutions Limited,C D INTEGRATED SERVICES LTD,BUY,202367,1564.95,-
03-MAR-2009,UFLEX,UFLEX Limited,IMAGE TOWNSHIP AND DEVELOPERS,BUY,325498,55.31,-
03-MAR-2009,ALPHAGEO,Alphageo (India) Limited,ASISH FINANCE LIMITED,SELL,32700,78.25,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,A TO Z STOCK TRADE PRIVATE LIMITED,SELL,71686,131.76,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,AMBIT SECURITIES BROKING PVT. LTD.,SELL,118519,128.34,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,BP FINTRADE PRIVATE LIMITED,SELL,171548,124.74,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,C D INTEGRATED SERVICES LTD,SELL,63303,127.71,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,DKG SECURITIES PVT. LTD.,SELL,84260,140.22,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,GHALLA BHANSALI STOCK BROKERS PVT. LTD.,SELL,68829,130.30,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,HARBUX SINGH SIDHU,SELL,59112,119.51,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,KAUSHIK SHAH SHARES & SECURITIES PVT LTD,SELL,203562,124.28,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,LATIN MANHARLAL SECURITIES PVT. LTD.,SELL,184605,128.42,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,MANIPUT INVESTMENTS PVT LTD,SELL,174280,130.32,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,MARWADI SHARES AND FINANCE LIMITED,SELL,98926,126.79,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,NIRMAN MANAGEMENT SERVICES,SELL,204817,124.75,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,OM INVESTMENTS,SELL,81087,128.37,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,PRASHANT JAYANTILAL PATEL,SELL,99007,127.28,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,R BABY,SELL,120461,120.35,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,R.M. SHARE TRADING PVT LTD,SELL,71270,130.47,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,SALASAR STOCK BROKING LTD.,SELL,67173,118.08,-
03-MAR-2009,EDSERV,Edserv Softsystems Limite,TRANSGLOBAL SECURITIES LTD.,SELL,76588,128.98,-
03-MAR-2009,EDUCOMP,Educomp Solutions Limited,C D INTEGRATED SERVICES LTD,SELL,202367,1565.85,-
Post Session Commentary - March 3 2009
The Indian market took a sharp hit in the final trading hour to touch more than three month low as the selling pressures emerged across the sectoral indices. Weakness prevailed in the bourses after exhibiting volatility for throughout of trading session. Heavy selling by the foreign funds from the past few days also weighed on the sentiments. Though market tried to recuperate gradually in afternoon but was not able to sustain the momentum and all over again turned southward.
The domestic market opened on flat note and turned volatile soon after start amid bearish sentiments all over the world. The US markets plunged on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped below the 7000 mark and the S&P 500 index fell to new 12-year lows after insurance major AIG reported a massive quarterly loss. Benchmark indices were instable on continuous bouts of buying and selling led by weak global cues along with short recovery. Further market continued to swing along with futile tryouts to change the direction on recovered US index futures. Finally, market decided to walk in company with bears on intense selling pressure over the ground during final trading hours. Drop in European markets after firm opening along with lower closing of majority of Asian markets also fueled the sentiments. BSE Sensex ended below 8,550 mark and NSE Nifty closed below 2,700 level. From the sectoral front, investors off-loaded position across the sectors. Among those Consumer Durables, FMCG, Teck, Bank, Oil & Gas, IT, Power and Metal stocks witnessed most of the selling from these baskets. BSE Mid Cap and Small Cap stocks also remained under pressure during the trading session.
Among the Sensex pack 27 stocks ended in red territory and 3 in green. The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market remained negative as 1595 stocks closed in red while 810 stocks closed in red and 107 stocks remained unchanged in BSE.
The BSE Sensex closed lower by 179.79 points at 8,427.29 and NSE Nifty ended down by 52.20 points at 2,662.40. BSE Mid Caps and BSE Small Caps ended with losses of 43.85 points and 39.72 points at 2,657.13 and 3,009.56 respectively. The BSE Sensex touched intraday high of 8,635.20 and intraday low of 8,390.21.
Losers from the BSE Sensex pack are Tata Power (6.41%), RCom (4.44%), ITC Ltd (3.75%), TCS Ltd (3.12%), HDFC (2.95%), Bharti Airtel (2.60%), ICICI Bank (2.56%) and Tata Motors (2.54%).
Gainers from the BSE Sensex pack are Graism Industries (2.88%), ACC Ltd (1.26%) and JP Associates (0.88%).
On the global markets front the Asian markets which opened before the Indian market, ended in red. Asian stocks extended their losses on financial worries after troubles at financial giants like American International Group and HSBC sent Wall Street to new multiyear lows overnight. Shanghai Composite index, Seng, Nikkei 225 and Straits Times index ended lower by 22.02, 283.53, 50.43 and 4.89 points at 2,071.43, 12,033.88, 7,229.72 and 1,528.51 respectively.
European markets, which opened after the Indian market, are trading lower after higher opening. In London FTSE 100 is trading lower by 33.86 points at 3,691.97 and in Frankfurt the DAX index is trading down by 26.36 points at 3,683.71.
The BSE Consumer Durables index tumbled (3.15%) or 48.64 points to close at 1,496.33 on huge selling pressure. Titna Ind (6.07%), Gitanjali GE (3.27%), Blue Star L (1.89%), Videocon Ind (1.12%) and Rajesh Export (0.43%) ended in red.
The BSE FMCG index ended down by (2.59%) or 51.53 points at 1,941.07. Losers are United Brew (5.55%), ITC Ltd (3.75%), Marico Ltd (3.56%), United Spr (3.16%) and Colgate Palm (3.01%).
The BSE Teck index ended lower by (2.15%) or 36.40 points to close at 1,656.61. Rolta Ind (18.19%), HT Media (9.44%), IBN18 (5.41%), NIIT Ltd (5.07%) and Tanla (4.88%) ended in negative territory.
The BSE Bank index lost (2.10%) or 84.91 points at 3,949.08 on fears of rising defaults in a weakening economy. Main losers are Yes Bank (4.58%), Bank of Baroda (4.32%), Punjab National Bank (4.00%), Bank of India (3.70%) and Kotak Bank (3.60%).
The BSE Oil & Gas index closed with decrease of (1.88%) or 110.44 points at 5,775.57 as crude oil prices declined 10% on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Monday. Scrips that lost are Cairn Ind (3.89%), Essar Oil Ltd (2.80%), Reliance Petroleum (2.40%), ONGC Ltd (2.36%) and Reliance (2.13%).
The BSE IT stocks lost (1.86%) or 38.34 points to close at 2,019.24 on fears that a weak global economy would cut the amount firms spent on technology. Losers are Rolta Ind (18.19%), NIIT Ltd (5.07%), TCS Ltd (3.12%), Infosys Tech (1.74%) and Wipro Ltd (1.16%).
Reliance Communications dropped 4.44%. Reliance Globalcom, the international arm of the company bagged a new three year contract from Remy Cointreau Group to implement a new dedicated telecom network to support the distribution strategy of the firm.
Infosys Technologies fell 1.74% after foreign broker Wachovia Capital Markets slashed rating on the stock to ''under perform'' from ''market perform''.
Cairn India declined 3.89% as crude oil prices declined 10% on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Monday, 2 March 2009.
HCL Technologies dropped 1.11%. The company signed a multi crore end to end IT services engagement covering the entire IT lifecycle from transformation to integration and operations management with National Insurance Company Ltd (NIC), one of the leading general insurance companies in India for a period of 7 years. The value of the contract is Rs 393 crore.
IVRCL Infrastructures and Projects lost 0.62%. The company has bagged seven projects worth Rs 670.03 crore from different agencies for construction related works.
Gemini Communication Ltd (GCL) gained 8.67%. The company has secured an order from Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), for supply, implementation and maintenance of Rural Mobile WIMAX in the telecom circles of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Chennai, Tamilnadu and Orissa. The order is worth Rs 67 crore in the first phase. This is BSNL’s first procurement of Mobile WIMAX systems, and takes the first lead in deploying Mobile WIMAX network in large scale in India.
Sensex at 3-year closing low
Key benchmark indices slumped in late trade as European stocks gave up early gains and slipped into the red on deepening concerns about the global economy. Banking, IT and metal stocks led the fall. Cement stocks rose on decent- to-strong growth in sales/dispatches in the month just gone by and on higher cement prices. The BSE Sensex lost 179.79 points, or 2.09% to 8,411.30, its lowest closing level in more than three years.
Volatility ruled the roost on the bourses right from the onset of the trading session today. The market opened weak but soon jumped into the green before plunging into the red shortly tracking weak world markets. A strong rebound took place again in morning trade on higher US index futures. Sensex moved to green from red. It, however, soon slipped into the red shortly as heavy selling by foreign funds in the past few days weighed on the investor sentiment. The market cut losses again in early afternoon trade.
The Sensex moved into the green again before once again slipping into the red. The market fell once again after surging to the fresh day's high in mid-afternoon trade. The market slumped in late trade on deepening concerns about the global and domestic economy.
There has been heavy selling by foreign funds this year. FII outflow in February 2009 totaled Rs 2707 crore. FII outflow in calendar year 2009 totaled Rs 7418.80 crore (till 2 March 2009). As per the provisional data on BSE, FIIs sold shares worth Rs 741.33 crore and domestic funds bought shares worth Rs 523,57 crore today, 3 March 2009.
Expectations of a rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) remain with the latest foreign trade data providing further proof that the Indian economy is slowing down. Exports fell 16% in January 2009, falling for the fourth month in a row, data released by the government during trading hours on Monday, 2 March 2009, showed.
European shares moved to red from green as banks reversed early gains as concerns about the global economy mounted. Key benchmark indices in France, Germany and UK were up by between 0.07% to 1.7%.
Asian markets moved between positive and negative zone, cutting intraday losses as US index futures rose. Key benchmark indices in Japan, Singapore, China and Hong Kong were down by between 0.32% to 2.3%. Key benchmark indices in Taiwan and South Korea were up by between 0.21% to 0.66%.
Trading in US index futures showed the Dow could rise 10 points at the opening bell on Tuesday, 3 March 2009.
US markets ended at 12-year low on Monday, as another bailout of insurance giant AIG stirred fears about the stability of the financial system. It was the first time the Dow has closed below 7,000 since May 1997.
The global economy is in dire state. The International Monetary Fund may cut its month-old forecast for the global economy to predict a contraction this year, Nicolas Eyzaguirre, director of the fund's western hemisphere department, said yesterday, 2 March 2009.
The US economy shrank at a 6.2% annual pace in Q4 December 2008, the biggest contraction since 1982. Japan's economy contracted at the fastest pace since the 1974 oil shock.
Closer home, the outcome of the forthcoming parliamentary elections will be a key drive of the domestic bourses going ahead. The market may recover if a coalition led either by Congress or BJP comes to power. But the recovery will be subject to BJP or Congress led coalition coming to power without a support from the Left front which is against key economic reforms. The market will then look for whether the new government which comes to power undertakes second generation reforms that could bring India back on a strong growth path witnessed in five years between 2003 and 2008.
It is highly unlikely that either Congress or BJP comes to power on its own i.e. without the support of other smaller/regional parties. The chief Election Commission on Monday announced a month long schedule of the parliamentary elections. The elections will he held between mid-April 2009 to mid-May 2009.
The BSE 30-share Sensex lost 179.79 points, or 2.09%, to 8,411.30, its lowest closing since 10 November 2005. At the day's low of 8,390.21 the Sensex lost 216.87 points in late trade. At the day's high of 8,635.20, the Sensex rose 28.12 points in mid-afternoon trade.
The S&P CNX Nifty was down 52.20 points, or 1.95%, to 2,622.40.
The Sensex is down 1,236.01 points or 12.81% in calendar 2009 from its close of 9,647.31 on 31 December 2008.
The BSE clocked a turnover of Rs 2,542 crore, lower than Rs 2,587.98 crore on Monday, 2 March 2009.
Nifty March 2009 futures were at 2588, at a discount of 34.40 points as compared to the spot closing of 2622.40. Turnover in NSE's futures & options (F&O) segment surged to Rs 41,297.48 crore from Rs 35,310.68 crore on Monday, 2 March 2009.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market was weak on BSE with 825 shares advancing as compared with 1,617 that declined. A total of 67 shares remained unchanged.
The BSE Consumer Durables index (down 3.15%), the BSE FMCG index (down 2.59%), the BSE TECk index (down 2.15%), the BSE Bankex (down 2.1%) underperfomed the Sensex.
The BSE Realty index (down 1.03%), the BSE Healthcare index (down 1.23%), the BSE Auto index (down 1.41%), the BSE PSU index (down 1.42%), the BSE Capital Goods index (down 1.44%), the BSE Metal index (down 1.46%), the BSE Power index (down 1.81%), the BSE IT index (down 1.86%), the BSE Oil & Gas index (down 1.88%) outperformed the Sensex.
From the 30 share Sensex pack, 27 stocks fell while rest rose.
India's largest private sector company by market capitalization and oil refiner Reliance Industries (RIL) fell 2.13% to Rs 1,199.05 off the day's high of Rs 1,250.60. The stock had lost 3% in the previous trading session after the company set the swap ratio for merger of Reliance Petroluem which was slightly in favour of Reliance Petroleum.
Reliance Industries said on Monday 2 February 2009 its board approved the absorption of its unit Reliance Petroleum (RPL) and set a share swap ratio giving it direct control of the world's largest refinery complex. Reliance Industries said it would issue one share for every 16 held in RPL, which runs a refinery. Reliance Petroleum fell 2.4%.
Cairn India declined 3.89% as crude oil prices declined 10% on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Monday, 2 March 2009. India's largest oil exploration firm by revenue ONGC fell 2.36%.
PSU OMCs rose on sharp fall in crude oil prices. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, Indian Oil Corporation and Bharat Petroleum Corporation rose by between 1.2% to 2.25%. The fall in crude oil prices will reduce the under-recoveries for the PSU OMCs on sale of fuel at controlled prices. PSU OMCs are currently making profit on sale of petrol and diesel. But they continue to make losses on the sale of kerosene and liquefied petroleum gas.
Capital goods stocks fell on worries a slowing economy will crimp orders. Crompton Greaves, Larsen & Toubro, ABB, Praj Industries, Bharat Heavy Electricals, Thermax fell by between 0.36% to 1.88%.
Banking stocks slumped as fears of rising defaults in a weakening economy offset hopes a further fall in interest rates may boost lending growth. Bank stocks were highly volatile as they moved between positive and negative zone on alternate bouts of buying and selling. India's largest private sector bank by net profit ICICI Bank was down 2.56% to Rs 296.40. Its American Depository Receipts (ADR) slipped 11.72% on Monday, 2 February 2009. Recently, Life Insurance Corporation of India hiked its stake in ICICI Bank by 2.04% to 9.38%.
India's second largest private sector bank by operating income HDFC Bank fell 1.73% to Rs 831 as its ADR fell 7.1% overnight.
India's largest bank in terms of assets and branch network State Bank of India fell 1.95% to Rs 975.85 after the bank reduced deposit rates by 40 to 50 basis points across maturities. The new rates would be effective from 9 March 2009.
PSU bank stocks, Union Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India fell by between 1.89% to 4.32%.
Despite a steep cut in policy rates by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) since October 2008, there has not been a commensurate reduction in lending rates by banks as fears of rising bad loans have made them cautious in increasing advances/lending. One reason why banks have not fully passed on the central bank rate cuts to customers is because higher bond yields are pushing up their funding costs. Bond yields and bond prices are inversely related.
Meanwhile, after a recent steep rise the bond yields have started easing since late last week buoyed by hopes the central bank will purchase more bonds at the buyback auction. The central bank is scheduled to buy back Rs 6000-crore of federal debt, with an option to buy an additional Rs 3000 crore on Thursday, 5 March 2009, ahead of a Rs 12000 crore government bond auction on Friday, 6 March 2009.
It may be recalled that a solid rally in bond prices had helped banks post strong Q3 December 2008 results.
Outsourcing focussed IT firms declined in late trade on fears a weak global economy would cut the amount firms spent on technology. Earlier, IT stocks had recovered from an intraday slide. India's third largest software services exporter, Wipro fell 1.16% to Rs 200.50 off the day's high of Rs 205.80. Its ADR fell 9.67% on Monday. India's largest software services exporter by sales TCS fell 3.12% to Rs 445.15 off the day's high of Rs 465.
India's second largest software services exporter Infosys Technologies slipped 1.74% as its ADR fell 5.87% overnight. Foreign brokerage Wachovia Capital Markets cut rating on the stock to 'underperform' from 'market perform'.
IT firms derive a lion's share of revenue from exports to US. There have been concerns of cut back in technology spend by global firms amid a recession in the US economy and due to the global financial sector crisis.
IT stocks fell even as rupee reversed gains. The Indian rupee fell beyond 52 per dollar to a new record low in afternoon trading on Tuesday as a falling stock market intensified worries of capital outflows. The partially convertible unit was at 51.98 per dollar, 0.29% weaker than Monday's close of 51.90/92. A weak rupee boosts revenues of IT firms in terms of the domestic currency as IT companies earn a lion's share of revenue from exports.
Metal stocks fell on worries a weakening domestic and global economy will hit demand for metals. Sterlite Industries, Hindalco Industries, Tata Steel, Steel Authority of India fell by between 1.33% to 2.29%.
Sesa Goa fell 3.55% on reports iron ore export prices have declined in the past few days due to fall in demand from China.
Cement stocks held firm in a weak market on jump in February 2009 cement dispatches and on higher cement prices. Grasim Industries rose 2.88% while Ultratech Cement gained 1.35%. Aditya Birla Group said cement shipments rose 10.1% to 2.92 million tonnes in February 2009 over February 2008. Production for the month rose 9.5% to 2.92 million tonnes, the company said in a statement. The group's cement business includes flagship Grasim Industries and unit UltraTech Cement, with combined production capacity of 35 million tonnes a year.
India's largest cement maker by sales ACC rose 1.26% as cement dispatches were up 4% at 1.75 million tones (mt) in February 2009 over February 2008.
Ambuja Cement rose 4.68% as it reported 11.3 % increase in dispatches at 1.65 mt in February 2009 over February 2008.
Cement prices in the non-trade segment have increased from Monday by Rs 6-10 per bag, according to a report. The report stated that after a price hike of Rs 4-5 per 50 kilogram bag in the first week of February 2009, there was a second round of price hike of about Rs 3 per bag by cement manufacturers in the retail segment in the third week of February 2009
Rate sensitive realty stocks fell on recent reports falling interest rates have failed to revive housing demand .DLF, Indiabulls Real Estate and Unitech rose by between 0.47% to 2.4%. Most of the realty deals including sale of commercial property and housing sales are driven by finance.
ICICI Bank clocked the highest volume of 67.26 lakh shares on BSE. Tata Steel (30.63 lakh shares), Jaiprakash Associates (30.23 lakh shares), DLF (26.96 lakh shares) and Reliance Infrastructure (26.57 lakh shares) were the other volume toppers in that order.
Reliance Industries clocked the highest turnover of Rs 220.26 crore on BSE. ICICI Bank (Rs 204.26 crore), Reliance Infrastructure (Rs 118.71 crore), State Bank of India (Rs 117.82 crore) and Larsen & Toubro (Rs 59.07 lakh) were the other turnover toppers in that order.
Market may recover
The market may recover after yesterday's (2 March 2009) steep slide caused by worries over the global economy. The triggered for an intraday rebound will recovery in Asian stocks after an initial slide. Shares of car makers, two-wheeler makers and cement shares may rise on decent to strong growth in sales/dispatches in the month just gone by.
Expectations of a rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) remain with the latest foreign trade data providing further proof that the Indian economy is slowing down. Exports fell 16% in January 2009, falling for the fourth month in a row, data released by the government during trading hours on Monday, 2 March 2009, showed.
Japanese stocks came off early lows on indications public funds were supporting the market. The Nikkei 225 average was down just 0.28%. It was down about 1% just a while ago.
High US index futures aided recovery in Asian stocks from lower level. Trading in US index futures showed the Dow could rise 78 points at the opening bell.
April 2009 Nymex crude oil futures
were down five cents at $40.10 a barrel on Globex, after sliding $4.61 or 10.3% in New York.
Market may remain volatile
The market may witness cautious trend as US indices ended on a negative note yesterday and Asian indices are exhibiting mix trends in the morning trades. Although the bias remains positive, investors should maintain caution as profit taking at higher levels may pull down the market. Among the local indices the Nifty could test 2650 and 2600 on the downside while on the upper side it may move up to 2700. The Sensex has a likely support at 8540 and may face resistance at 8750.
US indices finished on a negative note on Monday. While the Dow Jones ended in a negative at 6763 declined by 300 points, the Nasdaq down by 55 points at 1323.
Crude oil prices inched higher in the US market, with the Nymex light crude oil for April delivery moved down $4.61 to close at $40.15 a barrel. In the commodity space, the Comex gold for April series fell $2.50 to settle at $940.
Pre Session Commentary - March 3 2009
Today domestic markets are likely to open negative as majority of Asian markets have once again opened in deep red. The sentiments are very fragile across the global markets as the financial sectors are under huge trouble due to the recession. The AIG reporting a massive loss of $ 61.7 billion for the third quarter shows signs of further deterioration in the financial sector. This has deepened worries of economic slowdown which as per Warren Buffet is likely to stretch beyond 2009. There is no specific domestic news to propel or support the falling domestic markets. Investors would be very cautious on their holdings and positions. One could witness further slide on the bench mark indices as there would be huge selling pressure across the broader level to evade the risk of uncertainty.
On Monday, the markets witnessed a brutal loss amidst weak global cues. The worst that expected contraction estimates of the US GDP data shook the whole world. Asian markets opened with huge losses and domestic markets were never late to open with a negative gap. In the Asian markets expect Shanghai composite, the rest closed in red territory. The European markets also traded in the southward direction since the negative gap opening. The sentiments were very fragile as there was not domestic news to support or resurrect the downfall. Reliance Infra was the biggest loser for the day as the company is set to merge with RIL for a swap ratio of 16:1. On the other hand, sectors like Bankex, Metal, Oil & Gas and CG were hammered brutally as they lost 4.86%, 4.31%, 2.94% and 2.90% respectively. Consumer Durable was the only sector to escape the blow. During the session we expect the markets to be trading negative with mild volatility.
The BSE Sensex closed low by 284.53 points at 8,607.08 and NSE Nifty ended low by 89.05 points at 2,674.60. The BSE Small cap and Mid Cap closed with losses of 57.31 points and 56.73 points at 2,700.98 and 3,049.28. The BSE Sensex touched intraday high of 8,762.88 and intraday low of 8,563.52.
On Monday, the US stock markets closed in red for the fourth consecutive session. The sentiments were weak since the opening bell as the AIG reported the loss of $61.7 billion, highest loss by any company for a quarter ever. The company will receive $ 30 billion as a bail out from US government. On the other hand the personal income for January was up 0.4% after declining 0.2% the prior month. Economists had estimated 0.2% decline in January. Warren Buffet has reinforced the fact that the economy is in shambles, which is likely to remain beyond 2009. US light crude oil for April delivery reversed its three day rally, as the prices fell by $0.46 to settle at $44.76 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The crude prices touched a low of $42.55 during the intraday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) declined by 299.64 points to close at 6,763.29. The NASDAQ Composite (RIXF) index fell by 54.99 points to close at 1,322.85 and the S&P 500 (SPX) fell by 34.27 points to close at 700.82.
Today major stock markets in Asia are trading in deep red. Shanghai composite is down by 26.39 points to 2,067.06, Japan''s Nikkei is low by 30.09 points at 7,250.06. Hang Seng is low by 248.09 points at 12,069.37, South Korea''s Seoul Composite is up by 4.41 points at 1,023.22 and Singapore''s Strait Times is also trading low by 0.08 points to 1,533.32.
Indian ADRs closed down. In technology sector, Wipro ended down by 9.67% along with Infosys by 5.87%. Further, Satyam gained 6.62% while Patni Computers closed down by 4.84%. In banking sector ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank lost 11.72% and 7.10% respectively. In telecommunication sector, MTNL lost 10% and Tata Communication plunged 7.31%. Sterlite Industries decreased by 7.17%.
The FIIs on Monday stood as net sellers in equity and net buyer in debt. Gross equity purchased stood at Rs 1,840.90 Crore and gross debt purchased stood at Rs 91.40 Crore, while the gross equity sold stood at Rs 2,111.20 Crore and gross debt sold stood at Rs. 58.30 Crore. Therefore, the net investment of equity and debt reported were Rs (270.30) Crore and Rs 33.10 Crore respectively.
On Monday, the Indian rupee closed at 51.90/92, 1.5% weaker than its previous close of 51.10/12. The rupee slipped further for the sixth consecutive day as the foreign investors are pulling their money out of Indian stock markets. The exports are also plummeting causing further concerns of dollar flow.
On BSE, total number of shares traded were 22.59 Crore and total turnover stood at Rs 2,587.98 Crore. On NSE, total number of shares traded were 46.20 Crore and total turnover was Rs 7,133.54 Crore.
Top traded volumes on NSE Nifty – Unitech with 26101692 shares, Power Grid with Reliance Petro with 25226551 shares, ICICI Bank with 12044522 shares, Suzlon Energy with total volume traded 11197699 shares followed by SAIL with 9275245 shares.
On NSE Future and Options, total number of contracts traded in index futures was 745063 with a total turnover of Rs 9,461.37 Crore. Along with this total number of contracts traded in stock futures were 329134 with a total turnover of Rs 8,982.04 Crore. Total numbers of contracts for index options were 1129081 with a total turnover of Rs 15,464.73 Crore and total numbers of contracts for stock options were 46615 and notional turnover was Rs 1,402.54 Crore.
Today, Nifty would have a support at 2,594 and resistance at 2,623 and BSE Sensex has support at 8,409 and resistance at 8,492.
Wall Street in shambles
Investors ignore economic data and focus on Warren Buffet's comments
It was a painful day at Wall Street today, Monday, 02 March, 2009. Market kicked off the week amid a grim scenario and stocks at Wall Street ended with losses once again. Pessimistic comments from investor Warren Buffet, couple of in line economic reports and huge losses registered by AIG in its latest quarter took stocks gliding down the line. As hours passed, improvement in market sentiments was nowhere to be seen. Economic reports did little to uplift investor sentiments today at Wall Street.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended lower by 300 points at 6,763, the Nasdaq closed lower by 55 points at 1,322 and the S&P 500 closed lower by 34.2 points at 700. At this level, indices were at their lowest levels since December, 1996.
All ten sectors ended in the red today. Industrials, financial, energy and materials led the declines on a sectoral basis.
Stocks actually began the session in negative territory as investors reacted negatively to AIG's earning report. AIG posted a fourth quarter loss exceeding $60 billion. Reports indicate it is the largest quarterly loss in U.S. corporate history.
Among major economic reports scheduled for the day, the Institute for Supply Management reported today that its monthly purchasing managers' index rose to 35.8% in February from 35.6% in January. Readings under 50% show business is getting worse for most firms. The worsening of business came in for the thirteenth straight month.
In a separate report, the Commerce Department reported today that personal savings rate hit a 14-year high in US in January, 2009. U.S. households socked away most of the extra income they got in January from annual cost-of-living raises.
But reports just got ignored as traders focused their attention on famous investor Warren Buffet. Investor Warren Buffett stated to his shareholders in a letter that he believes the economy is in shambles, and that it will likely remain that way beyond 2009. With this, stocks just refused to come out from the dark.
Oil prices ended drastically lower on Monday, 02 March, 2009. Prices continued to fall after stocks continued to register losses at Wall Street after preliminary fourth quarter GDP report showed that the US economy contracted more than expected in US. Prices also fell due to the strong dollar. A stronger dollar pressures demand for dollar-denominated commodities, such as crude oil which become more expensive for holders of other currencies and also vice versa.
On Monday, Friday, crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for April delivery closed at $40.15/barrel (lower by $4.61 or 10.3%) on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Last week, crude ended higher by 12%. For the month of February, crude prices had ended higher by 1.5%.
In the currency market on Monday, the dollar index, which measures the value of dollar against a basted of six weighted currencies, gained 0.7% after gaining 2.2% in February, 2009.
Tomorrow there are quite a few economic reports scheduled. Economic data for tomorrow include January pending home sales and February auto sales. Fed Chairman Bernanke is scheduled to testify at Senate Budget Committee hearing at 10:00 AM ET and Treasury Secretary Geithner scheduled to testify at a House Panel on the Federal budget at 12:30 PM ET.
Daily News Roundup - March 3 2009
Reliance to double KG Basin gas output by 2009-end to make up for the delay in launching gas production. (BL)
Bharti Airtel clocked ~Rs76.4bn revenues from wireless services during the Sep-Dec’08 quarter, surpassing that of RCom and Vodafone Essar put together. (ET)
BHEL to setup a manufacturing unit at Tirumayam in Tamil Nadu at an initial investment of Rs2.5bn. (BL)
NTPC’s Solapur project to be commissioned in 2013. (BL)
Moser Baer PhotoVoltaic plans to enter the US market and expand its presence in Europe. (BS)
SBI, IDBI Bank and Yes Bank slashed deposit rates by 25 to 75 basis points across various maturities. (BS)
Infosys to absorb all campus hires in July 2009. (BL)
Consortium partners British Gas, ONGC and RIL of Panna-Mukta-Tapti (PMT) fields propose to invest US$510mn in FY10 in the asset. (BL)
GSPL expects 60% growth in volume in April 2009. (BL)
Aditya Birla group and ACC have recorded increase in production by 9.5% and 2.9% yoy respectively, while the despatches increased by 10% and 3.5% yoy respectively. (ET)
L&T has further scaled up its stake in Kalindee Rail Nirman by 0.6% to 14.5%. (ET)
Reliance Globalcom, part of the Rcom, bagged a three-year contract with Rémy Cointreau Group to implement a new dedicated telecom network to support the distribution strategy of the company. (BL)
SAIL, Tata Steel, JSW Steel and Rashtriya Ispat Nigam recorded an increase in steel sales in February 2009. (ET)
Mahindra Logistics, the 100% subsidiary of M&M, to phase out its investment of Rs10bn over the next 3-4 years instead of the originally planned two-year period. (BL)
Vedanta Group to invest Rs700bn in India by 2011-12. (BS)
Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar and Idea Cellular will save ~Rs40bn each in FY09, if the new government decides to charge a one-time spectrum acquisition fee from these companies for holding spectrum beyond 6.2Mhz. (FE)
Apollo Tyres’ board will meet on March 19 to consider buy-back. (FE)
Jain Irrigation to raise US$15mn through preferential allotment. (BL)
The Tata Group may offload stake in Tata Technologies – an unlisted company to raise ~US$100mn. (ET)
The Essar-group promoted Aegis BPO has made an offer to acquire ICT Group, US for ~US$130mn in cash. (ET)
Marriott International Inc plans to open six new properties in India this year and to launch its sixth brand in India, the luxury Ritz-Carlton by end of 2010. (FE)
Fresh polls to elect a new government at the Centre will be held between April 16 and May 13, 2009. (BS)
FMC to appoint external auditors for all three national commodities exchanges NCDEX, NMCE and MCX along with an Indore-based regional exchange NBOT. (BS)
Cement prices for western region in the non-trade segment have increased by Rs6-10 per bag. (FE)
The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission has issued amended stricter regulations for open access in inter-state transmission. (FE)
All airlines operating from Delhi will collect the development fee of Rs200 and Rs1,300 from each departing domestic and international passenger, respectively. (BS)
The Government has partially relaxed the ban on import of toys from China. (BS)
Tender for bulk order of ~Rs210bn power equipment to companies with manufacturing base in India is likely to be floated in Q1 FY10. (FE)
Easy slide ahead!
It is easier to pull down than to build up.
The season of pulling down one another begins on the political front. As days progress, we will witness need-based ‘mergers and acquisitions’ of political parties. While action shifts to the political arena, another slide lays in store for the Indian stock market. A recovery is possible only if global markets oblige though no such signs are visible this morning.
With the schedule of the Lok Sabha polls formally announced,there is no scope for any fresh government measures to shore up the economy (or the market). Therefore, all eyes will be on the RBI to unveil fresh doses of monetary stimulus. The Q3 GDP data and the latest trade figures reveal further weakness in the macro picture. The Centre’s fiscal health too is worsening.Another negative is the slide in the rupee, which will only encourage further selling by FIIs. Though Feb. auto numbers have been better, the same trend is unlikely to remain for long. The mess in the western financial system will continue to hinder any recovery in the global economy. Lack of positive triggers will keep the domestic market subdued.
FIIs were net sellers in the cash segment on Monday at Rs5.8bn, while the local institutions pumped in Rs3.34bn. In the F&O segment, the foreign funds were net sellers at Rs455.7mn. On Friday, FIIs were net sellers in the cash segment at Rs2.7bn.
US stocks slumped on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 index falling to new 12-year lows after insurance major AIG reported a massive quarterly loss, heightening worries about the financial sector and the economy.
The Dow tumbled 299.64 points, or 4.2%, to 6,763.29, its first close below 7,000 since May 1, 1997. The S&P 500 plunged 34.27 points, or 4.7%, to 700.82, while the Nasdaq Composite Index dived 54.99 points, or 4%, to 1,322.85.
The stock losses were in response to renewed troubles at AIG, but also a continuation of the worries about the financial sector and the state of the economy. Investors also remain wary about the various government initiatives to try to stem the recession, announced over the last few weeks.
AIG reported a US$62bn fourth-quarter loss, the largest in US corporate history, on turmoil in the credit markets and massive restructuring costs. For the full year, AIG lost US$99bn after reporting a profit of US$9.3bn in 2007.
The US government said it is revising its bailout for the third time and committing another US$30bn in exchange for cumulative preferred stock. The rescue plan now totals US$162.5bn.
US stocks tumbled on Friday after the government said it will control as much as 36% of Citigroup's common stock. Also, a government report showed last week that the world's largest economy shrank at its sharpest pace in 26 years in the fourth quarter of 2008.
Adding to the weakness was billionaire investor Warren Buffett's annual chairman's letter, in which he talked about the tough 2008 his Berkshire Hathaway company experienced. The influential investor admitted that he "did some dumb things in investments" during the year.
The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index rose modestly to 35.8 in February from 35.6 in January, after 12 months of declines. Economists expected a drop to 34. Despite the advance, the sector remains in a period of contraction, with any reading under 50 indicating weakness.
Another report showed that construction spending fell 3.3% in January after falling 2.4% in December. Economists thought it would fall 1.5%.
Personal income rose 0.4% in January after falling 0.2% in December. Economists thought it would fall 0.2%. Personal Spending rose 0.6% in January after falling 1% in December. Economists thought it would rise 0.4%.
Treasury prices rallied, lowering the yield on the benchmark 10-year note to 2.87% from Friday's 3.01%.
In currency trading, the dollar gained versus the euro and fell against the yen.
US light crude oil for April delivery fell US$4.61 to settle at US$40.15 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
COMEX gold for April delivery fell US$2.50 to settle at US$940 an ounce.
European shares slid, with banks taking another pounding, as HSBC became the latest lender to ask shareholders for cash to shore up its balance sheet.
The pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 index plummeted 5% to 164.30, with the banking sector losing nearly 10%.
Shares of HSBC plunged 19% in London after the Anglo-Asian banking major said it intends to raise 12.5 billion pounds in the largest-ever rights issue by a UK company.
HSBC also reported that its 2008 net profit fell 70% to US$5.73bn and that it will largely shut down its HFC and Beneficial consumer-finance operations in the US.
Elsewhere in Europe, the UK's FTSE 100 index fell 5.3% to 3,625.83, while the French CAC-40 index dropped 4.5% to 2,581.46 and Germany's DAX 30 index lost 3.5% to 3,710.07.
It was the second straight trading session where Indian markets ended in the red. The sharp cut on the bourses was on the back of a global sell-off. Also dismal trade data further dampened the sentiment on Dalal-Street. India's merchandise exports fell 16% in January over the same period a year earlier, posting fourth straight month of decline. The banking, metals and the capital goods stocks were under pressure. However, the Autos were in demand on the back of good sales numbers.
The BSE Sensex slipped 284 points to close at 8,607 and the NSE Nifty was down 89 at 2,674.
Among the 30-components of Sensex, 29 stocks ended in red and only M&M ended in the positive terrain. Among the major laggards were, Reliance Infra, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, RCom, JP Associates and TCS.
The board of directors announced that shareholders of RPL will receive 1 fully paid equity share of Reliance Industries for every 16 fully paid equity shares of RPL held by them on the record date to be fixed by the Transferee Company.
Shares of Reliance Industries slipped by a 3% to Rs1225 after hitting an intra-day high of Rs1262 and an intra-day low of Rs1213 recording volumes of over 1.6mn shares on BSE.
On the other hand, shares of RPL pared early gains and ended lower by 1.4% to Rs75 after hitting an intra-day high of Rs82 and an intra-day low of Rs70 recording volumes of over 8.9mn shares on BSE.
Edserv Softsystems Ltd., a web-learning, IT consulting and resource deployment company today was listed at Rs63 against its issue price of Rs60.
As the day progressed the stock climbed significantly and finally ended at Rs137 translating into a premium of 129% over its issue price. The scrip hit an intra-day high of Rs147 and an intra-day low of Rs55 recording volumes of over 34mn shares on the BSE.
It was the first IPO after a gap of nearly four months and the issue got subscribed 1.30 times.
Shares of Hindustan Dorr Oliver pared its gains and slipped by 1.1%. The stock had hit an intra-day high of Rs34.2 after the company announced that it bagged an order worth Rs240mn from M/s. HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd for detailed engineering, shop & site fabrication, transportations and supply of Process Pressure Vessels weighing from 50 MT to 250 MT each. The scrip hit a low of Rs31.5 and recorded volumes of over 2,00,000 shares on BSE.
Shares of Aurobindo Pharma also erased its gains and ended 2% lower at Rs147 The company announced that its wholly owned subsidiary Aurobindo Pharma Australia Pty Ltd received it's first approval from Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), Government of Australia for the registration of Auro-Lisinopril 5, Auro-Lisinopril 10 and Auro-Lisinopril 20 tablets containing Lisinopril (as dihydrate) 5mg, 10mg and 20mg.
The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs150 and a low of Rs146 and recorded volumes of over 7,000 shares on BSE.
Shares of Span Diagnostics reversed its gains and sharply plunged by over 11% to Rs36. The stock had hit an intra-day high of Rs45 after the board of directors of the company would meet on March 7, 2009 to consider the allotment of 1,57,500 Share Warrants convertible in to Equity Share of Rs 10/- each at the premium of Rs40.60 per share to promoters on preferential basis pursuant to in-principle approval. The scrip hit an intra-day low of Rs35 and recorded volumes of over 40,000 shares on BSE.
Looking at the sharp slide on Monday, bulls may continue to remain under pressure in the coming days as the macro-economic outlook is getting worse by the day, which is evident in the Q3 GDP data followed by weak trade data. Traders should have a cautious approach and be stock specific.
Zee Entertainment Enterprises
We recommend a sell in Zee Entertainment Enterprises from a short-term horizon. It is apparent from the charts of the stock that it has been on an intermediate-term downtrend from its September 2008 high of Rs 239. The stock has been forming lower troughs and lower peaks since then. In mid-February, the stock encountered resistance around Rs 130 from its down trendline and resumed its intermediate-term downtrend. On February 27, the stock tumbled by 13 per cent. This selling interest prolonged and the stock plummeted by 6 per cent on March 2. The stock is trading well below its 21- and 50-day moving averages. The daily relative strength index (RSI) is on the brink of entering the bearish zone from the neutral region. The weekly RSI is already featuring in the bearish zone. Moreover, the daily moving average convergence and divergence indicator is signalling a sell. We are bearish on the stock from a short-term perspective. We anticipate the stock to decline further until it hits our price target of Rs 90. Traders with short-term perspective can sell the stock while maintaining a stop-loss at Rs 105.
Nifty March 2009 futures at huge discount
Turnover declines
Nifty March 2009 futures were at 2629.80, at a steep discount of 44.80 points as compared to the spot closing of 2674.60. Turnover in NSE's futures & options (F&O) segment was Rs 35,310.68 crore, lower than Rs 39,204.47 crore on Friday, 27 February 2009.
State Bank of India March 2009 futures were at discount at 969.50 compared to the spot closing of 994.50.
Reliance Industries March 2009 futures were at discount at 1216.50 compared to the spot closing of 1225.65.
ICICI Bank March 2009 futures were at discount at 300.30 compared to the spot closing of 304.40.
In the cash market, the S&P CNX Nifty lost 89.05 points or 3.22% at 2674.60.
Bullion metals end lower
Stronger dollar tarnish precious metals
Bullion metal prices ended lower for the sixth straight time on Monday, 02 March, 2009. Prices continued to fall as the dollar strengthened against the potential rivals and also as traders anticipated that economy will recover in the coming months and this decreased the appeal of the precious metals.
Generally, a stronger dollar pressures demand for dollar-denominated commodities, such as crude oil and gold, which become more expensive for holders of other currencies and also vice versa.
On Monday, Comex Gold for April delivery fell $2.5 (0.3%) to close at $940 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Last week, gold ended lower by 6%. For the month of February, gold ended higher by 7.4%. For January, 2009, gold had gained 3.9%. Year to date, gold prices are higher by 8.2%.
On 17 March, 2008 prices had skyrocketed to a high of $1,034/ounce. But prices have dropped significantly (8%) since then.
On Monday, Comex silver futures for March delivery fell 4 cents (0.3%) to end at $13.07 an ounce. In February, 2009, silver had rose 4.3% after climbing 14% in January. Year to date, silver has climbed 18.2% this year. For 2008, silver had lost 24%.
In the currency market on Monday, the dollar index, which measures the value of dollar against a basted of six weighted currencies, gained 0.7% after gaining 2.2% in February, 2009.
The World Gold Council had reported in February that demand for gold surpassed $100 billion last year for the first time ever, amid increased industrial and jewelry consumption and investors' purchase of the metal as a safe haven. Gold demand - including jewelry consumption, industrial demand and identifiable investments such as bars, coins and gold exchange-traded funds - hit $102 billion in 2008, up 29% from a year ago. In tonnage terms, gold demand rose 4% to 3,659 tons.
In 2008, gold prices ended higher by 5.5%. The dollar index had gained 12% that year.
Last year, the weakening dollar and higher global demand for raw materials had led to records for commodities including gold. Gold reached a record in March 2008 as a U.S. housing slump and credit crisis spurred the Federal Reserve to slash borrowing costs. In the last move, the Federal Reserve has cuts its target bank lending rate to 0.25% from 5.25% in September, 2007. The Fed did it in nine steps.
Prior to 2008, gold had witnessed the greatest annual gain in twenty eight years by gaining $200/ounce (31%) in FY 2007 as lower interest rates had sent the dollar tumbling, and crude-oil prices rose to a record. Silver had climbed 16% in FY 2007. In 2006, silver had jumped 46% while gold gained 23%.
At the MCX, gold prices for April delivery closed higher by Rs 302 (1.9%) at Rs 15,806 per 10 grams. Prices rose to a high of Rs 15,968 per 10 grams and fell to a low of Rs 15,525 per 10 grams during the day's trading.
At the MCX, silver prices for May delivery closed Rs 470 (2.1%) higher at Rs 22,640/Kg. Prices opened at Rs 22,279/kg and rose to a high of Rs 22,838/Kg during the day's trading.
Crude plunges more than 10%
Prices shed more than 10% in one session
Oil prices ended drastically lower on Monday, 02 March, 2009. Prices continued to fall after stocks continued to register losses at Wall Street after preliminary fourth quarter GDP report showed that the US economy contracted more than expected in US. Prices also fell due to the strong dollar. A stronger dollar pressures demand for dollar-denominated commodities, such as crude oil which become more expensive for holders of other currencies and also vice versa.
On Monday, Friday, crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for April delivery closed at $40.15/barrel (lower by $4.61 or 10.3%) on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Last week, crude ended higher by 12%. For the month of February, crude prices had ended higher by 1.5%.
Prices reached a high of $147 on 11 July, 2008 but have dropped almost 69% since then. Year to date, in 2009, crude prices are lower by 6%. On a yearly basis, crude prices are lower by 67%.
On last Friday, in US, fourth quarter GDP was revised lower to reflect an annual rate of -6.2% versus a previously estimated -3.8%. The decrease in fourth quarter activity primarily reflected negative contributions from exports, personal consumption expenditures, equipment and software, and residential fixed investment. The report once again questioned the demand for oil in the coming months.
Pessimistic comments from investor Warren Buffet, couple of in line economic reports and huge losses registered by AIG in its latest quarter took stocks gliding down the line today. As hours passed, improvement in market sentiments was nowhere to be seen.
In the currency market on Monday, the dollar index, which measures the value of dollar against a basted of six weighted currencies, gained 0.7% after gaining 2.2% in February, 2009.
Prices had been sliding since past couple of months after fear gripped the US economy that US banks might be nationalized.
OPEC has been trying to cut production consistently in order to step up prices from their current low levels. There has been conflicting reports in the market regarding the fact that OPEC is likely to reduce output in March, 2009. OPEC has already agreed to cut cartel quotas by 4.2 million barrels a day since September, equivalent to about 5% of global oil demand. The cartel is supposed to meet on 15 March at Vienna.
Against this background, April reformulated gasoline fell 1.2% to $1.3725 a gallon and April heating oil dropped 2% to $1.2675 a gallon.
Natural gas for April delivery dropped 1.1% to $4.152 per million British thermal units.
Recently, Paris based, IEA has reported that this year's global oil demand will fall by 1 million barrels a day, or 1.1%, from last year. If realized, it will be the biggest yearly drop since 1982. The IEA cited a worsening economic outlook across all regions as the reason for the weakness in oil demand.
Crude prices had ended FY 2008 lower by 54%, the largest yearly loss since trading began at Nymex.
At the MCX, crude oil for April delivery closed at Rs 2,235/barrel, lower by Rs 146 (6.1%) against previous day's close. Natural gas for February delivery closed at Rs 214.2/mmbtu, lower by Rs 0.7/mmbtu (0.3%).
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