The indifference continues

The universe is not hostile, nor yet is it friendly. It is simply indifferent. - JH Holmes

A better economic forecast in terms of 8.6% GDP growth did bring some cheer but profit booking came sooner than one would have anticipated. The indifference continues on the street as any good news hardly keeps the buying momentum on.



Metal stocks saw some gains and on the LME, three-month copper futures hit a record high of $10,160 per ton.

The outlook for the start appears flat with our market going its own way. The Nifty’s Golden Ratio suggests support at 5352. The Charts say that the pattern of falling wedge in Nifty and breakout above 5470 should pave for a smart move till 5740. Sounds good but when it will come is the question. The recent activity towards the end of the day will continue to make investors jittery.

Investors big and small seem to have not many options but to resort to playing in the options segment punting on many probabilities. Instead, use the current impasse in the market to identify quality counters.

US indices ended higher while Asian markets are mostly flat to negative. Another lackluster day seems to be in the offing.

Reshuffling seems to be the in thing with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer planning to extend a management reshuffling. Back home, Wipro has yet again announced changes across its IT business which will now be driven by six new business units.

Reports state that Infotech Enterprises is in advanced stages of acquiring an aerospace services company in Europe for ~US$20mn.

On Wall Street, it was a Merger Monday and the US indices saw some gains with the Dow Jones adding 69 points and the Nasdaq gaining 15 points. AOL's announced acquisition of news blog The Huffington Post for $315mn. The other merger news included oil drillers Ensco and Pride International. Danaher said it would buy medical device maker Beckman Coulter for $6.8bn.

The dollar depreciated against the British pound and the euro, but appreciated against the Japanese yen. Oil for March delivery fell $1.55 to settle at $87.48 a barrel. Gold futures for April delivery fell 80 cents to close at $1,348.20 an ounce.

SEBI has said that new norms for takeover of companies, as also for ownership and governance issues of stock exchanges, would take some time as they need more deliberations. SEBI has also deferred decisions on important issues such as the MCX-SX case, Direct Takeover Code and Jalan Committee report.