Daily News Roundup - Sep 10 2012

The disinvestment department has called in bids from merchant bankers and brokers to sell its stake in public sector companies like Nalco and NMDC, making it the government’s first move this fiscal year to cut its stake in state-run companies. (ET) The Delhi High Court dismissed Hoffmann-La Roche’s suit accusing Cipla of infringing the Swiss company’s patent for its lung cancer medicine Tarceva. (ET) The Supreme Court has ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation to investigate the alleged illegal exports of iron ore by companies such as Adani Enterprises, Salgaocar Mining Industries and Mallikarjun Shipping. (ET)

Positive tempo seen

"If you always do what you always did, you'll always get what you always got." – Anonymous. Nothing really changed over the weekend as the key Indian stock indices logged modest gains in low volume, lackluster trade on Saturday.However, they might just maintain the positive tempo seen in recent days at start today. The upbeat undercurrent is largely due to healthy global markets.The ECB’s monetary stimulus appears to have calmed unnerved investors for the time being. The latest IIP data (Sept. 12) and WPI inflation report (Sept. 14) will have some bearing on Indian markets as well amid lingering worries over the policy paralysis that has gripped the nation. The German constitutional court’s verdict on the legitimacy of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) will be keenly watched. The initial euphoria over the ECB’s bond-buying plan could fade if the German court delivers an unfavourable verdict.

Strong gains for bullions

Weak job report and weak dollar impart the dazzle Bullion prices at Comex rose sharply on Friday, 07 September 2012 settling at their best in more than six months, after a negative jobs report at Wall Street was thought to hasten additional U.S. economic stimulus measures. The low dollar also aided in prices moving up. Gold for December delivery advanced $34.90, or 2.1%, to settle at $1,740.50 an ounce on the Comex division on Friday. That was gold's highest settlement since late February. On the week, gold rose 3.1%, its third consecutive week of gains December silver gained $1.02, or 3.1%, to $33.69 an ounce on Friday. That was silver's highest finish since March. Silver rose 7.2% in the five-day period. Further impulse for silver, metals widely used in industrial sectors, came from the announcement Friday that China had approved another batch of multi-million dollar infrastructure projects. Latest data from the Labor Department at Wall Street showed that U.S. nonfarm payrolls rose by 96,000 in August, 2012. This came in well below market estimates around 125,000 and compared to July's revised growth of 141,000 jobs. The unemployment rate fell to 8.1%, down from 8.3% in July, as more people checked out of the workforce. The dollar index, whch weighs the strength of the dollar against a basket of six other currencies, fell by almost 0.8% on Friday.

Crude pares earlier losses and moves up

Crude ends flat for the week Crude oil futures settled higher on Friday, 07 September 2012 at Nymex shaking off earlier weakness as disappointment over the U.S. nonfarm payroll numbers gave way to hope the negative report would usher in faster stimulus measures. The low dollar also aided in prices moving up. Light and sweet crude for October delivery rose 89 cents, or 0.9%, to end at $96.42 a barrel on Friday. On the week, however, oil was closer to flat, down less than 0.1%. Latest data from the Labor Department at Wall Street showed that U.S. nonfarm payrolls rose by 96,000 in August, 2012. This came in well below market estimates around 125,000 and compared to July's revised growth of 141,000 jobs. The unemployment rate fell to 8.1%, down from 8.3% in July, as more people checked out of the workforce. The dollar index, whch weighs the strength of the dollar against a basket of six other currencies, fell by almost 0.8% on Friday. The dollar fell in the wake of Draghi's monthly news conference Thursday. Among other energy products on Friday, October gasoline rose 3 cents, or 1%, to $3.02 a gallon, while October heating oil added 1 cent, or 0.2% to $3.15 a gallon. Gasoline gained 1.6% on the week, its sixth consecutive week of gains. Heating oil declined 1% this week, snapping a five-week winning streak. Natural gas also for October delivery declined 9 cents, or 3.4%, to $2.68 per million British thermal units. Prices declined 4.2% on the week, with the product down for six out of the past seven weeks.

Market likely to open higher

Trading for the week is likely to begin on firm note on positive Asian stocks. Trading of S&P CNX Nifty futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates a gain of 17.50 points at the opening bell. Asian markets were trading higher on Monday, 10 September 2012, with expectations rising that weak US jobs data would prompt the US Federal Reserve to announce fresh stimulus this week. Jindal Steel & Power turns ex-dividend today, 10 September 2012, for dividend of Rs 1.60 per share for the year ended 31 March 2012 (FY 2012). ONGC Videsh (OVL) has signed definitive agreements for the acquisition of Hess Corporation's 2.7213% participating interest in the Azeri, Chirag and the Deep Water Portion of Guneshli Fields in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea (ACG) and 2.36% interest in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline (BTC), for $1 billion. The acquisition is subject to relevant government and regulatory approvals and is expected to close by the first quarter of 2013, OVL said after trading hours on Saturday, 8 September 2012.