BSE Bulk Deals to Watch - March 27 2008

 Deal Date Scrip Code Scrip Name Client Name Deal Type * Quantity Price **
27/3/2008 517494 ACCEL TRANS ACCEL LIMITED B 207514 24.41
27/3/2008 517494 ACCEL TRANS ZENER CONTROLS PRIVATE LTD S 207514 24.41
27/3/2008 531381 ARIH FOUND H CALEDONIA INVESTMENTS PLC B 233300 290.50
27/3/2008 531381 ARIH FOUND H MARWADI SHARES AND FINANCE LIMITED S 233300 290.50
27/3/2008 526556 AVERY INDIA MINAL B PATEL B 61515 47.05
27/3/2008 526556 AVERY INDIA BHARAT J PATEL S 61600 47.05
27/3/2008 505506 AXON INFOTEC UNIFLEX CARRYING CO. PVT LTD B 70000 29.00
27/3/2008 505506 AXON INFOTEC ANMOL FINANCE COMPANY B 18000 28.99
27/3/2008 505506 AXON INFOTEC V R P FINANCIAL SERVICES PVT LTD B 84000 29.00
27/3/2008 530803 BHAGERI DYEC NIPUR CHEMICALS LIMITED B 20479 23.60
27/3/2008 530803 BHAGERI DYEC YOGESH VINAYCHANDRA SHAH S 20479 23.60
27/3/2008 512332 BIRLA CAP AYODHYAPATI INVESTMENT PVT LTD B 64000 5.73
27/3/2008 512332 BIRLA CAP SHAH MADHUBEN AMRUTLAL B 150000 5.71
27/3/2008 526225 BLOOM DEKOR VIKRAM KUMAR BAGMAR B 37065 11.00
27/3/2008 526225 BLOOM DEKOR NAVRATAN MAL BAGMAR B S 37065 11.00
27/3/2008 509475 BOMBAY PAINT DEORA ANJU R B 10500 55.75
27/3/2008 509475 BOMBAY PAINT DEORA GAYATRI DEVI B 10500 52.25
27/3/2008 509475 BOMBAY PAINT DEORA ANJU R S 10500 52.25
27/3/2008 509475 BOMBAY PAINT DEORA GAYATRI DEVI S 10500 55.75
27/3/2008 505185 BOSCH CHA SY TEEN LOK ADVISORY SERVICES PVT LTD B 104500 674.97
27/3/2008 590061 BRUSHMAN IND DEVKANT SYNTHETICS INDIA PVT. B 100649 89.70
27/3/2008 532324 CINEVISTS LT MINAL B PATEL B 600000 7.15
27/3/2008 532324 CINEVISTS LT LAXMI INVESTMENTS B 491358 7.70
27/3/2008 532324 CINEVISTS LT HARDIK B PATEL S 600000 7.15
27/3/2008 532324 CINEVISTS LT DARA K MEHTA S 510000 7.70
27/3/2008 520022 DEN SO INDIA DHIREN S. SHAH HUF S 100000 89.99
27/3/2008 532180 DHANLAK BANK PRAMOD P SHAH B 501329 61.52
27/3/2008 532180 DHANLAK BANK TRADING AC SPS SHARES BRK P LTD S 501329 61.48
27/3/2008 531367 DOLLEX INDUT NADEEM KHAN B 39425 30.56
27/3/2008 524818 DYNAMIC INDU DEEP INFRA.PVT LTD S 17500 12.79
27/3/2008 532491 ECE INDUSTRI MINAL B PATEL B 42786 285.00
27/3/2008 532491 ECE INDUSTRI BJD SECURITIES PVT LTD S 43886 285.36
27/3/2008 521099 EMTEX INDUST LAXMI INVESTMENTS B 58700 3.20
27/3/2008 521099 EMTEX INDUST KEKI D MEHTA S 58700 3.20
27/3/2008 507552 FOODS & INNS PILOT CONSULTANTS LTD S 9725 280.00
27/3/2008 530389 GEEFCEE FINA ALCHEMIST LIMITED B 50000 137.50
27/3/2008 532715 GITANJALI GE INDIA MAX INVESTMENT FUND LTD. B 792290 244.89
27/3/2008 532909 GRABAL ALOK INDEX EQUITIES PVT.LTD B 507280 97.29
27/3/2008 532909 GRABAL ALOK DIVYA SHAKTI TRADING SERVICES LIMITED S 500000 97.30
27/3/2008 500010 HOUSING DEVELOPMENT FINANCE CO ORIENT GLOBAL TAMARIND MAURITIUS LIMITED B 3400000 2625.00
27/3/2008 531025 INCA FINLEAS PRITI MERCANTILE COMPANY LTD B 35200 57.67
27/3/2008 531025 INCA FINLEAS NIPRA STOCK BROKING PVT.LTD S 19700 58.50
27/3/2008 509709 INTERN CONVE MULTI MANAGER INDIA FUND LIMITED B 25000 231.10
27/3/2008 509709 INTERN CONVE KEDCO PROCESSORS PRIVATE LIMITED S 29313 232.01
27/3/2008 532771 JHS SVEN ADVENT ADVISORY SERVICES PRIVAT LIMITED B 300000 35.70
27/3/2008 532771 JHS SVEN KADAYAM RAMANATHAN BHARAT S 300000 35.70
27/3/2008 516078 JUMBO BAG LT VINAY JAIN B 100000 43.95
27/3/2008 516078 JUMBO BAG LT DINESH RATHOD HUF B 50000 43.17
27/3/2008 516078 JUMBO BAG LT CHETAN VALCHAND MEHTA S 44000 43.90
27/3/2008 523810 KALE FILMS NITIN R PUNMIYA B 400000 1.61
27/3/2008 526015 KEMROC IND E PRUTHVI BROKERS AND SHAREHOLDINGS PVT. LTD. B 40000 580.00
27/3/2008 512559 KOHINORFOODS SAMTA JAIN S 115000 108.07
27/3/2008 526604 LIPPI SYSTEM GOPI RAM PHOOLCHAND HUF B 39666 7.60
27/3/2008 526604 LIPPI SYSTEM AJAY GOYAL HUF S 39666 7.60
27/3/2008 512267 MEDIA MATRIX ANIL BABULAL VEDMEHTA S 1195125 5.65
27/3/2008 532127 MOBILE TELEC PRISM IMPEX PVT LTD S 210000 11.00
27/3/2008 500294 NAG CONS COM RELIANCE CAPITAL TRUSTEE CO LTD A C RELIANCE GROWTH FUND B 2000000 210.00
27/3/2008 500294 NAG CONS COM PRUDENTIAL ICICI TRUST LTD A C INFRASTRUCTURE FUND B 2200000 210.00
27/3/2008 500294 NAG CONS COM JF ASSET MANAGEMENT A C JPMORGAN ASSET MNGT EUROPE S A R L S 4150000 210.00
27/3/2008 500294 NAG CONS COM JF ASSET MANAGEMENT A C JF INDIA FUND 614198 S 1200000 210.00
27/3/2008 524816 NATCO PHARMA PASHA FINANCE PVT LTD S 350000 78.25
27/3/2008 524570 PODDAR PIGME BINDU MANGLIK B 129000 21.75
27/3/2008 531219 POONAM PHARM SWARN GANGA TRADING PVT. LTD. B 35900 3.25
27/3/2008 531219 POONAM PHARM SKM VYAPAAR PVT LTD S 31000 3.25
27/3/2008 507649 RASOI LTD PRISM IMPEX PRIVATE LIMITED S 65000 374.99
27/3/2008 507300 RAVALG SUG F YOGENDRA POPATLAL SHAH HUF B 499 4657.39
27/3/2008 507300 RAVALG SUG F YOGENDRA POPATLAL SHAH HUF S 499 4524.21
27/3/2008 531203 SAHIL FINANC ANMOL FINPRO PVT LTD S 55000 22.73
27/3/2008 526981 SHRI BAJRANG DIAMANT INVESTMENT AND FINANCE S 45000 25.86
27/3/2008 532344 SOFTSOL INDI ADVENT ADVISORY SERVICES PRIVAT LIMITED B 100000 50.10
27/3/2008 532344 SOFTSOL INDI KADAYAM RAMANATHAN BHARAT S 100000 50.10
27/3/2008 531373 SUAVE HOTEL KHANDE RAO BIRADAR B 40000 22.50
27/3/2008 531373 SUAVE HOTEL KIRAN DARAK S 40000 22.50
27/3/2008 590047 SUNDARAMMUL ACCORD CAPITAL MARKETS LTD B 400000 10.25
27/3/2008 590047 SUNDARAMMUL PRISM IMPEX PVT LTD S 396829 10.25
27/3/2008 590047 SUNDARAMMUL J V COMMODITY PVT LTD S 238000 10.39
27/3/2008 523425 SUNRAJ DIA E GUNVANTI CHANDRAKANT GANDHI B 250000 7.71
27/3/2008 523425 SUNRAJ DIA E RAJ SHROFF B 41400 7.70
27/3/2008 523425 SUNRAJ DIA E MAHESH CHIMANLAL PATEL S 250000 7.71
27/3/2008 523425 SUNRAJ DIA E KAWALJITSINGH J. DANG S 44200 7.75
27/3/2008 532738 TANTIA CONS PRISM IMPEX PVT LTD S 100000 86.50
27/3/2008 531675 TRICOM INDIA SHAISHAV RAKESHBHAI SHAH S 94892 143.59
27/3/2008 504605 UNIABEX AL P MONEYBEE COMMODITIES PVT.LTD. B 29500 73.40
27/3/2008 504605 UNIABEX AL P SUNITA DALMIA B 10000 72.00
27/3/2008 504605 UNIABEX AL P SUNITA DALMIA S 10000 79.24
27/3/2008 519152 VADILAL ENTE MANISHA S SANGHANI B 5000 67.00
27/3/2008 519152 VADILAL ENTE HIRAL INVESTMENT B 5001 71.40
27/3/2008 519152 VADILAL ENTE MEERA BHAVESH BHUPTANI B 10000 65.50
27/3/2008 519152 VADILAL ENTE GROWTH CAPITAL B 10000 71.40
27/3/2008 519152 VADILAL ENTE MANISHA S SANGHANI S 5000 71.40
27/3/2008 519152 VADILAL ENTE HIRAL INVESTMENT S 5000 67.00
27/3/2008 519152 VADILAL ENTE MEERA BHAVESH BHUPTANI S 10000 71.40
27/3/2008 519152 VADILAL ENTE GROWTH CAPITAL S 10000 65.50
27/3/2008 531962 VALLEY INDIA MUKESHKUMAR JAGDISHCHANDRA BANGUR HUF B 28350 11.47
27/3/2008 531962 VALLEY INDIA RAJKUMAR KAURAM JAIN S 28525 11.47
27/3/2008 531574 VAS INFRA LAXMI INVESTMENS B 221760 43.43
27/3/2008 531574 VAS INFRA DARASHAW AND COMPANY PVT LTD S 100000 43.25
27/3/2008 531574 VAS INFRA KEKI D MEHTA S 89217 43.25
27/3/2008 523724 VIJ.SHANTI B KADAYAM RAMANATHAN BHARAT B 248453 58.75
27/3/2008 523724 VIJ.SHANTI B LAXMI INVESTMENTS B 176905 57.50
27/3/2008 523724 VIJ.SHANTI B DARASHAW BLOOD STOCK PVT LTD B 289254 57.50
27/3/2008 523724 VIJ.SHANTI B ADVENT ADVISORY SERVICES PRIVAT LIMITED S 248453 58.75
27/3/2008 523724 VIJ.SHANTI B TSR DARASHAW LTD S 155279 57.50
27/3/2008 523724 VIJ.SHANTI B DARA K MEHTA S 133975 57.50
27/3/2008 523724 VIJ.SHANTI B BAMAN K MEHTA S 89906 57.50
27/3/2008 523724 VIJ.SHANTI B KEKI D MEHTA S 86999 57.50
27/3/2008 516072 VISHNU CHEM BERVIN INVESTMENT AND LEASING LTD B 92500 53.00
27/3/2008 516072 VISHNU CHEM BERVIN INVESTMENT AND LEASING LTD S 92500 53.00
27/3/2008 523628 WEAROLOGY LT LAXMI INVESTMENTS B 190967 93.36
27/3/2008 523628 WEAROLOGY LT TIHUNAZ K MEHTA S 53532 93.50
27/3/2008 523628 WEAROLOGY LT DARA K MEHTA S 53381 93.00
27/3/2008 523628 WEAROLOGY LT BAMAN K MEHTA S 32054 93.50

NSE Bulk Deal Watch - March 27 2008

 Date,Symbol,Security Name,Client Name,Buy/Sell,Quantity Traded,Trade Price / Wght. Avg. Price,Remarks
27-MAR-2008,BANG,Bang Overseas Limited,STUPENDORS TRADERS PVT LTD,BUY,230000,123.07,-
27-MAR-2008,GSSAMERICA,GSS America Infotech Limi,BALASO VITTHAL SHINDE,BUY,85303,637.19,-
27-MAR-2008,GTL,GTL Limited,GLOBAL ASSET HLDG CORIN P.LTD,BUY,563283,246.40,-
27-MAR-2008,INFOMEDIA,Infomedia India Limited,RUANE,CUNNIFF&GOLDFARB INC SUB A/C.ACACIA BANYAN PARTNERS,BUY,100000,228.00,-
27-MAR-2008,KOHINOOR,Kohinoor Foods Limited,STUPENDORS TRADERS PVT LTD,BUY,100000,107.80,-
27-MAR-2008,KSCL,Kaveri Seed Company Limit,SRIVASTAVA RAHUL,BUY,71000,274.75,-
27-MAR-2008,LAKSHVILAS,Lakshmi Vilas Bank Ltd,Ariston Equity Stock Holdings P Ltd,BUY,250000,109.39,-
27-MAR-2008,MAHSEAMLES,Maha Seamless Ltd,PUSHPANJALI INVESTRADE PVT LT,BUY,392160,292.99,-
27-MAR-2008,POLARIS,Polaris Software Lab Ltd,WEXFORD CAPITAL LLC A/C WEXFORD SPECTRUM INVESTORS LLC,BUY,638500,83.48,-
27-MAR-2008,RKFORGE,Ramkrishna Forgings Ltd,AKG FINVEST LTD,BUY,100000,180.60,-
27-MAR-2008,SB&TINTL,SB&T International Ltd,MADHU JAYAKUMAR,BUY,300000,16.75,-
27-MAR-2008,SIMPLEXINF,Simplex Infrastructures L,TREE LINE ASIA MASTER FUND (SINGAPORE) PTE LIMITED,BUY,735000,540.00,-
27-MAR-2008,SUBROS,Subros Ltd,ASANSOL BOTTLING PACKAGING CO. LTD.,BUY,400000,36.50,-
27-MAR-2008,TANTIACONS,Tantia Constructions Limi,PILOT CONSULTANTS LTD,BUY,119730,87.40,-
27-MAR-2008,TNPL,Tamil Nadu Newsprint ,ASANSOL BOTTLING PACKAGING CO. LTD.,BUY,630000,94.76,-
27-MAR-2008,TVSSRICHAK,TVS Srichakra Limited,Hardik Bharat Patel,BUY,48781,82.54,-
27-MAR-2008,BANG,Bang Overseas Limited,JINDAL SUMIT,SELL,151744,123.93,-
27-MAR-2008,GSSAMERICA,GSS America Infotech Limi,BALASO VITTHAL SHINDE,SELL,85303,641.36,-
27-MAR-2008,IFCI,IFCI Ltd.,CITIGROUP GLOBAL MKTS MAURITIUS PVT LTD- SELL CODE,SELL,3579490,43.75,-
27-MAR-2008,INFOMEDIA,Infomedia India Limited,DEUTSCHE ASSET MANAGEMENT,SELL,100000,228.00,-
27-MAR-2008,KOHINOOR,Kohinoor Foods Limited,SAMTA JAIN,SELL,175780,108.04,-
27-MAR-2008,KOHINOOR,Kohinoor Foods Limited,STUPENDORS TRADERS PVT LTD,SELL,100000,110.00,-
27-MAR-2008,KSCL,Kaveri Seed Company Limit,SESHADRI BHARATHAN,SELL,70292,275.63,-
27-MAR-2008,RKFORGE,Ramkrishna Forgings Ltd,UNO METALS LTD,SELL,100000,180.60,-
27-MAR-2008,SB&TINTL,SB&T International Ltd,JUDITH INVESTMENT PRIVATE LIMITED,SELL,300000,16.75,-
27-MAR-2008,SIMPLEXINF,Simplex Infrastructures L,FID FUNDS MAURITIUS LIMITED ,SELL,735000,540.00,-
27-MAR-2008,SKUMARSYNF,S. Kumars Nationwide Ltd,COPTHALL MAURITIUS INVESTMENT LTD.,SELL,1015300,85.07,-
27-MAR-2008,SUBROS,Subros Ltd,IFB AUTOMOTIVE PRIVATE LIMITED ,SELL,402020,36.49,-
27-MAR-2008,TANTIACONS,Tantia Constructions Limi,PRISM IMPEX PVT LTD,SELL,118289,87.39,-
27-MAR-2008,TNPL,Tamil Nadu Newsprint ,IFB AUTOMOTIVE PRIVATE LIMITED ,SELL,633283,94.76,-
27-MAR-2008,TVSSRICHAK,TVS Srichakra Limited,Bharat Patel,SELL,49600,82.62,-

Post Market Commentary - March 27 2008

The Indian market closed on a mixed note with NSE Nifty closed with marginal gains while Sensex closed in negative. The market face the volatility since the initial start of the session due to the global concerns like February durables goods report by the US government raised fresh doubts about the economy of US. As per the commerce department, the durables goods fell 1.7%, which was the second monthly fall in a row. Also, the sales of new homes fell b1.8% in February for the fourth consecutive month as the steep slump in housing continued. Also, the expiry of the derivatives contract today adds to the sentiment. From the sectoral front, the Realty and Metal index remained in the limelight as most buying was witnessed from these baskets. While the Mid Cap and Small Cap, which faced the selling pressures at the initial session managed to recover from the fall to post good gains.

The BSE Sensex closed lower by 71.27 points at 16,015.56 while NSE Nifty closed up by 1.4 points at 4,830.25. The BSE Mid Caps and Small Caps closed higher by 5.23 points and 87.82 points at 6,276.26 and 7,526.78 respectively

The market breadth was strong as 1,493 stocks closed in green as against 1223 stocks that closed in red.

The BSE Realty index surged 170.92 points to close at 7,651.29. Major gainers are Parsvnath (5.48%), Omaxe (5.16%), HDIL (4.78%), Unitech (3.99%), Penland (3.17%), DLF (2.47%) and Phoenix mill (0.35%).

The Metal index closed higher by 108.80 points at 13,853.98. Gainers are Gujarat NRE (6.93%), Hindalco Inds (6.61%), Maharash Sea (6.56%), SH. Precoated (4.98%), Welspun Guj (3.71%) and Sterlite Inds (1.27%).

The Bankex index closed lower by 125.14 points at 8,176.66. Major losers are Union bank (4.05%), Axis bank (4.03%), SBI (3.69%), Yes bank (2.77%), Andhra bank (2.37%) and Allahabad bank (2%).

The Capital Goods index fell by 79.30 points to close at 13,714.74 as Kirloskar BR (5.95%), Bharat Elec (5.05%), L&T (2.71%) and BEML (1.48%) closed lower while SKF India (7.73%), Suzlon energy (5.04%), Areva (4.03%) and Thermax (3.78%) closed higher.

The Oil and Gas index dropped by 63.58 points to close at 10,160.98 as IOCL (3.48%), Aban Offshore (2.68%), HPCL (2.56%), GAIL India (1.33%), Reliance inds (1.03%) and RPL (0.71%) while Cairn India (1.97%), Essar Oil (0.45%) and RNRL (0.3%) closed higher.

The IT index decreased by 112.80 points to close at 3,579.75. Losers are Mphasis (6.54%), HCL Tech (4.83%), NIIT Ltd (4.83%), Patni Comp (4.55%), Satyam (4.35%), Educomp Soln (3.53%) and TCS (2.97%).

From the FMCG space, Glaxosmithkline Cons (5.09%), HUL (4.10%), ITC (2.54%), Nestle (2.16%), REI Agro (0.56%), Britannia (0.32%) and Tata Tea (0.16%) closed in green.

Market Close: Buying continues on the broader base but indices remain flat!

Indian markets ended the day on a flat note after a choppy and range bound trade, on F&O expiry day. On back of weak global cues, markets started the day in a negative region and slipped further, just to recover fully in the later half of the trading session. Value buying took the indices above previous close but profit booking on expiry related moves, ended the day with marginal loss. IT, Banking, Auto stock ended in red. Buying interest was seen in Realty, FMCG, Health Care and Power stocks. Small caps outperformed the front line indices while mid caps ended in flat. Asian markets ended mixed, European markets trading in green.

Sensex closed down by 71 points at 16015.56. Weighing on the Sensex are losses in Bajaj Auto (621,-4 percent), Satyam (395.05,-4 percent), SBI (1650.45,-4 percent), Infosys (1440.8,-4 percent) and Tata Motors (655.2,-4 percent). Losses are restricted by gains in Hindalco (172.5,+7 percent), HLL (244,+4 percent), Cipla (211.6,+3 percent), Bharti Tele (824.65,+3 percent) and ITC (200.05,+3 percent).

Getting a loan for two wheelers is not easy any more. Higher down payments and increase in interest rates will reduce the demand for the bikes. SBI have increased the interest rates by 50 bps to 15.50% while Canara Bank increased to 11.50% from 9.5%. ICICI Bank has the highest interest rates of 23%. Banks said that the increase in the interest rates was due to increase in the cost of borrowing money and also the cost of recovering money has gone up. Down payments in some cases have really gone up as high as 30% of the bikes cost. Citi Financials have stopped giving two wheelers loans. Defaults in this segment have shot up to 5% of the total two wheeler loans from 2% last year. Demand of bikes would decrease and impact the companies as they have to even juggle with the higher input cost which eats up the margins. The impact would be more in the rural areas where most of bikes sold are 100cc and Hero Honda is a big player here.

Allahabad Bank has cut the benchmark prime lending rate (BPLR) by 25 basis points. The bank informed that it has brought down its BPLR from the 13.25% to 13% with effect from April 1, 2008. It further said that the reduction is in regard to the present market scenario and the need to provide credit to productive sectors at affordable rate. The bank has already announced a cut in the interest rate of fresh housing loans by 25 basis points in both floating and fixed term loans with effect from April 01, 2008 for loans up to Rs 20 lakhs on all maturities. This accounts for major share in banks portfolio. The cut in rate helps to attract more customers to bank but the increasing prices of real estate could not influence the sales too much.

Technically Speaking: Sensex traded choppy for entire day. It made an intraday high of 16,111 and low of 15,869. The overall breadth was in favor of Advances while Advances stood at 1467 and Declines at 1245. Turnover was pretty good at Rs 6343 cr. Sensex remains under pressure from 16200-16300 range. We see a good upside if that level is broken, and Sensex can move upto 17100. On the lower side, 15780 and 15600 are good supports.

Sensex sheds 71 points

A day after the Sensex slipped over 131 points on an all-round selling, the market opened on a negative note. The market was gloomy amid a range-bound trend during intra-day trades influenced by subdued international markets. The Sensex saw strong optimism vanish after adding 61 points to touch the day's high of 16,111. The market thereafter zigzagged between its positives and negatives, but eased in the afternoon on sustained selling in information technology (IT), banking and auto stocks to touch the intra-day low of 15,869. Heavy buying in most of the index pivotal stocks helped the Sensex trim most of its losses towards the close and end the session at 16,016, down 71 points. The Nifty closed with gain of a point at 4,830.

However, the market breadth was in favour of gainers as 1,490 stocks advanced, 1,223 stocks declined and 61 stocks remained unchanged on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). Most of the sectoral indices closed with losses. BSE IT, Bankex and BSE Auto index were the major losers and slipped over 1-3% each. However, BSE Realty index soared 2.23% followed by BSE FMCG, HC, Power index and BSE Metal index all of which soared.

Among the 30 Sensex stocks, 16 ended in green. Attracting strong buying support, Hindalco Industries surged by 6.61% to Rs172.50, Hindustan Utilities shot up by 4.10% at Rs244, Cipla jumped by 2.89% at Rs211.60, Bharti Airtel advanced by 2.68% at Rs824.65, ITC scaled up by 2.54% at Rs200.05, DLF zoomed 2.47% at Rs674.05, Jaiprakash Associates added 2.30% at Rs231.25 and Reliance Communications gained 2.27% at Rs538.05. Among the laggards, Satyam tumbled 4.35% at Rs395.05, SBI slipped 3.69% at Rs1,650.45, Infosys fell 3.66% at Rs1,440.80, Tata Motors was down 3.56% at Rs655.20, TCS lost 2.97% at Rs853.15, Ranbaxy moved up 2.78% at Rs435.65 and L&T moved down 2.71% at Rs2,963.

Over 1.22 crore RNRL shares changed hands on the BSE followed by Ispat Industries (1.16 crore shares), IFCI (0.93 crore shares), Nagarjuna Constructions (0.68 crore shares) and RPL (0.59 crore shares).

Small-caps gain in volatile market

The key indices ended the highly volatile session on a mixed note. The Nifty ended almost steady even as the Sensex declined. The imminent expiry of March 2008 derivatives contracts caused volatility. Firm European markets aided recovery from lower level. In Europe, key indices in UK, France and Germany were up by 0.86% to 1.38%.

IT and banking shares fell sharply whereas FMCG and realty stocks bucked the weak trend. Gains in mid-cap and small-cap stocks led to positive market breadth.

Most of the Asian indices slipped today on worries that there will be more bank write-downs in the US after a prominent analyst lowered first-quarter profit forecasts for four major US banks namely -- Citigroup, Bank of America Corporation, JPMorgan Chase & Co, and Wachovia Corp. Key indices in China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan were down by 0.20% to 5.42%. However, Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 0.21%.

The 30-share BSE Sensex fell 71.27 points or 0.44% at 16,015.56. Sensex rose 24.61 points at the day's high of 16,111.44 in mid-afternoon trade. The index lost 217.74 points at session's low of 15,869.09, hit in early afternoon trade.

The broader CNX S&P Nifty rose 1.40 points or 0.03% at 4830.25. Nifty April 2008 futures were at 4849.45, at a premium of 19.2 points as compared to spot closing of 4830.25.

As per provisional data, foreign institutional investors bought shares worth a net Rs 247.98 crore today. Domestic funds bought shares worth a net Rs 339.84 crore.

The NSE's futures & options (F&O) segment turnover was Rs 64,308.86 crore, which was lower than Rs 57,628.83 crore on Wednesday, 26 March 2008.

The BSE small-cap index outperformed the Sensex, rising 1.18% at 7,526.78. The BSE Mid-cap index outperformed the Sensex, rising 0.08% at 6,276.26.

The market breadth was positive. On BSE, 1493 stocks advanced, 1223 declined and 59 stocks were unchanged.

BSE clocked a turnover of Rs 6343 crore as against Rs 6,137.44 on Wednesday, 26 March 2008.

India's largest private sector firm by market capitalization and oil refiner Reliance Industries (RIL) fell 1.03% to Rs 2275.

India's largest commercial vehicles maker by sales Tata Motors slipped 3.56% to Rs 655.20 on concerns that its borrowing cost may go up due to funding of the acquisition, which in the short term would impact the net profit of the company. The American depository receipt (ADR) of Tata Motors fell 7% on Wednesday, 26 March 2008 on the New York Stock Exchange after the deal was announced.

Top Sensex gainers were, Hindalco Industries (up 6.61% at Rs 172.50), Hindustan Unilever (up 4.10% at Rs 244), Cipla (up 2.89% at Rs 211.60), Bharti Airtel (up 2.68% at Rs 824.65) and ITC (up 2.54% at Rs 200.05).

Top Sensex losers were, Satyam Computer (down 4.35% at Rs 395.05), State Bank of India (down 3.69% at Rs 1650.45), Infosys Technologies (down 3.66% at Rs 1440.80), TCS (down 2.97% at Rs 853.15), and Ranbaxy Laboratories (down 2.78% at Rs 435.65).

The BSE Realty index outperformed the Sensex, rising 2.28% to 7,651.29. Parsvnath Developers (up 5.48% at Rs 201.30), Omaxe (up 5.16% at Rs 212.05), Housing Development & Infrastructure (up 4.78% at Rs 608.45), Unitech (up 3.9% at Rs 281.60) and Penland (up 3.17% at Rs 96.05), edged higher.

The BSE FMCG index outperformed the Sensex, rising 2.03% to 2,280.38. Glaxosmithkline Consumer Healthcare (up 5.09% at Rs 603.20), Nestle (up 2.16% at Rs 1,469.70), and REI Agro (up 0.56% at Rs 1,457.85), gained.

The BSE IT index underperformed the Sensex, falling 3.05% to 3,579.75. Mphasis (down 6.54% at Rs 182.10), NIIT (down 4.83% at Rs 96.45), and HCL Technologies (down 4.83% at Rs 262.85), declined. However, Wipro rose 0.26% to Rs 430.10.

The BSE Bankex underperformed the Sensex, falling 1.51% to 8,176.66. Union Bank of India (down 4.05% at Rs 143.40), Axis Bank (down 4.03% at Rs 793.25), Yes Bank (down 2.77% at Rs 185.80), Andhra Bank (down 2.37% at Rs 74.15) and HDFC Bank (down 0.43% at Rs 1,434.95), slipped.

India's largest private sector bank by assets ICICI Bank fell 1.03% at Rs 834.55.

Among the small-caps, Ankur Drugs And Pharma (up 20% at Rs 190.95), Classic Diamonds (India) (up 20% at Rs 62.15), Renaissance Jewellery (up 20% at Rs 61.30), BAG Films & Media (up 18.51% at Rs 38.10), and Grabal Alok Impex (up 17.14% at Rs 95), surged.

Hindustan Zinc fell 2.10% to Rs 523.95 after the company said it had cut its zinc prices by 4.6% or Rs 5,200 a tonnes to Rs 1.07 lakh per tonne with immediate effect.

State-run power utility Power Grid Corporation of India rose 1.13% to Rs 98.50 on reports that the company may win a Sri Lankan sub-sea cable order worth Rs 2500 crore.

Shipping firm Great Offshore slipped 1.65% to Rs 614.75 after the company said it has sold its vessel - Malaviya Nine, a 1983 built anchor handling tug - supply vessel.

Power sector financer Power Finance Corporation gained 2.03% to Rs 166 after the company said it has signed a memorandum of understanding with RITES to combine its resources and expertise to facilitate import of coal from African countries.

Valecha Engineering, which is primarily into road construction business, jumped 5.23% to Rs 175.95 after the company said it has bagged new projects worth Rs 250 crore which includes road works at Pune, Delhi airport express line work and piling projects.

Chemicals maker J B Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals surged 20% to Rs 44.80 after the company scheduled a meeting of the board of directors on 8 April 2008 to consider buyback of equity shares.

Software firm i-flex Solutions declined 3.02% to Rs 953.75 even as the company said Lien Viet Bank, Vietnam has selected Flexcube, i-flex's core banking solution for its banking operations.

Jewellery maker Rajesh Exports jumped 2.92% to Rs 72.35 after the company clarified that it has not suffered any losses in any type of currency options, commodity trading or any other speculative business.

Brokerage firm Prime Securities slumped 5% to Rs 87.95 after the firm said it incurred a loss of about Rs 3 crore in the futures and options segment and had made a provision of Rs 23 crore for 2007/08 towards depletion in value of securities. The comapny expects profit before tax for the current year to be Rs 27 crore after the write-off of investment, it said in a statement.

Housing Development Finance Corporation clocked a highest turnover of Rs 908.92 crore on BSE. Reliance Capital (Rs 298.46 crore), Reliance Industries (Rs 245.84 crore), GSS America (Rs 205.79 crore) and Nagarjuna Construction Company (Rs 414.17 crore), were the other turnover toppers on BSE in that order.

Reliance Natural Resources reported highest volume of 1.22 crore shares on BSE. Ispat Industries (1.16 crore shares), IFCI (93.77 lakh shares), Nagarjuna Construction Company (68.63 lakh shares) and Reliance Petroleum (59.17 lakh shares), were the other volume toppers on BSE in that order.

US markets declined yesterday, 26 March 2008 due to poor economic data. US Treasury Secretary, Henry Paulson said that there is a need to strengthen & clarify rules governing the financial sector. The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 109.74, or 0.88%, to 12,422.86. The Standard & Poor's 500 index declined 11.86 points, or 0.88%, to 1,341.13, while the Nasdaq Composite index shed 16.69 points, or 0.71%, to 2,324.36.

Intra-day volatility may exist

The market may witness cautious trend as US indices ended on a flat note yesterday and Asian indices are exhibiting mix trends in 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 4740 on the downside while on the upper side it may move up to 5050. The Sensex has a likely support at 16000 and may face resistance at 16400.

US indices finished on a flate note on Tuesday. While the Dow Jones ended in negative at 12533 declined by 16 points, the Nasdaq up by 14 points at 2341.

Indian floats trading on the US bourses were largely on the positve side except Patni Computers. Out of 11 stocks, ICICI Bank was the lead performer and soared 5.75% while MTNL & Infosys rose over 3% each. HDFC Bank, Dr Reddy, Satyam, Wipro, Tata Motors and Rediff gained nearly over 1% each. However, Patni Computers ended with marginal losses.

Crude oil prices inched higher in the US market, with the Nymex light crude oil for May delivery adding 36 cents to close at $101.22 a barrel. In the commodity space, the Comex gold for April series gained $16.30 to settle at $935.

Pre Market Watch - March 26 2008

The Indian Market is likely to have a positive opening today due to mixed cues from the global markets. On Tuesday, The Indian market posted second highest point gain to cross the 16,000 mark and closed on a strong note. Tracking the favoring cues from the global markets, the domestic market opened on a firm note and kept on marching forward throughout the trading session on the back of heavy buying across the sectoral indices. The domestic market rallied by taking the positive cues from the US as J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. agreed to increase its bid to acquire Bear Stearns Cos. JP Morgan lifted its offer for Bear Stearns to 10 U.S. dollars per share from 2 dollars. The revised plan is aimed at soothing Bear Stearns shareholders upset over JP Morgan''s earlier offer. Also the economic data pointed to signs of stability that showed US new homes sales had risen by 3% in February 2008. From the sectoral front, all the sectoral indices posted smart gains. The BSE Sensex closed higher by 928.09 points at 16,217.49 and NSE Nifty closed up by 267.65 points 4,877.50. We expect that the market may give up some of its yesterday's gains during the trading session.

On Tuesday, the US market closed mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) closed lower by 16.04 points at 12,532.60 while S&P 500 (SPX) index closed higher by 3.11 points at 1,352.99 and NASDAQ Composite (RIXF) grew by 14.30 points to close at 2,341.05.

The Indian ADRS closed in positive. In technology sector, Infosys grew by (3.03%) along with Wipro by (1.94%) and Satyam by (1.47%). In banking sector, ICICI bank and HDFC bank advanced by (5.75%) and (2.59%) respectively. In telecommunication sector, Tata Communication increased by (0.26%). Sterlite industries inched up by (7.06%).

Today the major stock markets in Asia are trading mixed. Hang Seng is trading higher by 171.77 points at 22,636.29 along with Taiwan Weighted trading up by 19.19 points at 8,814.28 while Japan's Nikkei trading lower by 112.42 points at 12,632.80.

The FIIs on Monday stood as net buyer in equity. The gross equity purchased was Rs4,183.30 Crore and the gross debt purchased was Rs0.00 Crore while the gross equity sold stood at Rs3,646.10 Crore and gross debt sold stood at Rs0.00 Crore. Therefore, the net investment of equity reported was Rs537.20 Crore and net debt was Rs0.00 Crore.

Today, Nifty has support at 4,731 and resistance at 4,952 and BSE Sensex has support at 15,814 and resistance at 16,468.

Weak economic data dampens US Market sentiment

 Consumer Confidence hits five year low sending dollar down against rivals

Alternately up and down since the opening bell, the major stock indices closed mixed after the Conference Board reported U.S. consumers' confidence fell in March. Other than that, a couple of other weak batch of economic reports took its toll on the market. Strong forecast from Monsanto was also overlooked. Six of the ten major economic sectors finished in positive territory. Materials posted the largest gain.

In the mornings session, the Dow was down by more than 100 points. At the end, The Dow Jones industrial Average ended the day with a loss of 16 points at 12,532. The Nasdaq Composite Index, finished higher by 14.3 points at 2,341. S&P 500 finished higher by 3.1 points at 1,353.

Seventeen out of thirty Dow stocks ended in the red today. Home Depot and Bank of America led the group of Dow losers.

The day started with some weak batch of economic data. The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index for March hit a 5-year low at 64.5 and checked in well below the market's expectation for a reading of 73.5. Confidence had dropped seven of the last eight months, and is down 42% since last July.

Also, the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which measures prices in 20 U.S. metropolitan areas, declined 10.7% on a y-o-y basis, the largest drop on record since the measurement began in 2001.

On the positive side, shares of Monsanto gained almost 10% after the St. Louis company lifted its projected earnings for 2008.

The tech sector got a lift today after Yahoo! was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Citigroup.

All Indian ADRs ended in green today. HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank were the two topmost gainers. The two ADRs gained 2.6% and 5.7% respectively today.

Crude prices ended modestly higher today as the dollar slumped. Traders also speculated that tomorrow's inventory report by Energy Department will show rise in gasoline and crude inventories. Crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for May delivery closed at $101.22/barrel (higher by $0.36/barrel or 0.4%) on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices earlier dropped to $99.3. Crude prices are 65% higher on a yearly basis.

In the currency market today, the euro traded as high as $1.5619 after a report showed consumer confidence in the U.S. fell more than forecast this month, fueling speculation that the Federal Reserve will have to cut its target bank-lending rate by as much as 50 basis points next month to revive economic growth. The dollar index, which tracks the value of the greenback against a basket of other currencies, fell 0.8% to 72.27.

Volume on the New York Stock Exchange topped 4 billion, and advancing stocks outran those declining nearly 2 to 1. On the Nasdaq, nearly 2.1 billion shares were exchanged, and advancing stocks topped those declining 9 to 5.

Tomorrow, February's Durable Goods Orders are due prior to the opening bell. February's New Home Sales data and the weekly oil inventory report are due after the market opens.

Bulls start living

Living well is the best revenge.

The bulls roared on Tuesday as if the world's woes have suddenly come to an end. So, are the bulls firmly back in control or will the resurgence in sentiment prove to be short-lived? Tuesday's rally - whatever the reason(s) - may give some confidence to the bulls. While we continue to advocate caution, the F&O segment is throwing up some positive signals. But if investors have to live well, forget leverage for some time at least. Don't attempt to cover up your losses (if any) in a hurry, lest you lose even more.

The Nifty futures for April series have added a good chunk of shares in open interest and are trading at a premium to the spot Nifty. The put-call ratio seems to have improved in favour of the bulls with strong build up in 4800 puts and 5000 calls.

Another big positive is that FIIs were big-time buyers yesterday. Also, global markets have staged a smart comeback, led by US stocks. No major bad news has hit the Wall Street this week so far. Commodity prices have cooled down a bit as well, though inflation is still a big worry across the globe. Currency fluctuations have ebbed. All these factors have contributed to the recent pullback in world equity markets.

Still, it remains to be seen how long and strong is this rally given the uncertainty surrounding the US and its impact on the global economy. For the time being though, we see the market rangebound with a positive bias. But, the key indices have to cross some crucial technical levels and stay there for a while to signal a revival of the forgotten bull phase.

Stock specific action is expected in counters like Gitanjali Gems which will announce yet another acquisition today. Maruti may attract some attention as it will launch a new sedan, called Swift DZire. STC, MMTC, SCI and Concor could gain amid news that the Government may sell 5% stake through follow-on public issues. Steel companies may come under some pressure after agreeing to halt exports to boost local supply. Dish TV may rise amid news that the Government is in favour of 74% FDI in DTH.

FIIs were net buyers of Rs12.46bn (provisional) in the cash segment yesterday while the local institutions pumped in nearly Rs4bn. In the F&O segment, foreign funds were net buyers of Rs20bn yesterday. The final tally for Monday's session is not available.

Asian markets are trading mixed this morning. The Nikkei in Tokyo was down 112 points or 0.9% to 12,632.80, following a 2.1% rally yesterday. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong rose 262 points or 1.2% to 22,727.

The Kospi in Seoul was flat at 1676 and the Straits Times in Singapore too was almost unchanged at 3002. The Shanghai Composite index in China gained 55 points or 1.5% at 3685 and the Taiex in Taiwan added 19 points at 8814.

About five stocks fell for every three that gained on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index, which lost 0.3% to 140.19 as of 11:07 a.m. in Tokyo. The benchmark is up 4.7% in the last three days on speculation that the US will contain credit- market losses. The index is still down 11% this year.

US stocks closed mixed on Tuesday after a tough day as Monsanto's improved forecast was offset by downbeat data on housing and consumer sentiment. Also, investors turned cautious as the Dow is up almost 7% in just over a week.

Stocks struggled for direction through the morning as investors held back after Monday's rally. However, stocks were mostly higher by the afternoon. Weakness in select financial and oil services stocks dragged the Dow into the negative zone.

A rally in commodity producers helped the US market overcome a grim report on consumer confidence and a record drop in home prices.

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold, Newmont Mining and Alcoa carried the S &P 500 Index to its first three-day advance in a month after metal prices increased.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended lower as Bank of America and Home Depot retreated. Monsanto, the largest seed producer, rallied the most in seven years after boosting its earnings forecast.

The S&P 500 added 3.11 points, or 0.2%, to 1,352.99. It is now up 4.2% over the past three days. The Dow dropped 16 points, or 0.1%, to 12,532.6. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 14 points, or 0.6%, to 2,341.05.

Market breadth was positive. Two stocks gained for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange.

The S&P/Case-Shiller index showed that home prices in 20 key markets in the US dropped 10.7% in January, the biggest drop on record.

Another report showed that consumer confidence slumped to 64.5 in March, from 75 in the previous month, a five-year low. Economists had forecast a smaller fall to 73.4. Consumer confidence slipped amid a struggling stock market, surging commodity prices, a weak dollar and the ongoing logjam in credit markets.

Yahoo was among the session's big technology gainers, after Citigroup upgraded it to "buy" from "hold" on bets that Microsoft will raise its bid for the search engine to $34 a share from $31 a share.

Shares of Thornburg Mortgage rallied 36% in active trading after the company said it will raise $1.35bn through a private placement of bonds in a bid to avoid bankruptcy. But a number of other financial stocks declined on heavy trading volume.

US light, crude oil for May delivery rose 36 cents to settle at $101.22 a barrel in New York. Oil prices hit a record $111.80 in electronic trading last week. COMEX gold for April delivery rose $16.30 to settle at $935 an ounce. Gold hit an all-time trading high of $1,033.90 a week ago.

The dollar gained versus the euro and fell versus the yen. The greenback hit an all-time low versus the euro and a 13-year low versus the yen last week, but has since recovered a bit. Treasury prices rallied, lowering the yield on the benchmark 10-year note to 3.5% from 3.55%.

Across the Atlantic, markets in Europe finished sharply higher. The FTSE 100 in London surged 3.5% to 5,689 while the DAX in Frankfurt climbed 3.2% to 6,524 and the CAC 40 in Paris advanced 3.4% to 4,692.

Cia. Vale do Rio Doce, the world's biggest iron-ore producer, has dropped a plan to acquire rival Xstrata, blaming opposition from the Swiss company's largest shareholder.

"We can resume negotiations at any moment," Roger Agnelli, CEO of Rio de Janeiro-based Vale, told reporters in Sao Paulo yesterday. Vale had boosted its offer for the world's biggest exporter of power-station coal to $90bn from $78bn.

In the emerging markets, the Bovespa in Brazil was up 2.4% at 61,234 while the IPC index in Mexico gained 1.2% at 29,981. The RTS index in Russia shed 0.35% to 1993 and the ISE National 30 index in Turkey dipped 0.2% to 51,098.

Will the momentum continue?

Markets extended their gains to fourth straight trading session as firm cues from the international equity markets coupled with buying momentum in the index heavyweights like Reliance Industries, ONGC, DLF and ICICI Bank lifted the markets to surge higher. The benchmark Sensex posted its second biggest single day points gain simultaneously its biggest single day points rally since January 25, 2008. The rally could be attributed to buying momentum in scrip across the sectors. All the Sectoral indices on BSE ended in green.

Finally, the BSE benchmark Sensex added 928 points to 16,217 and the Nifty index added 267 points to close at 4,877. Overall about 2,076 stocks advanced; 639 stocks declined while 47 stocks remained unchanged. Among the 50 Nifty 48 stocks ended in positive territory. On the other hand, only 1 stock ended in red.

BSE Realty index (up 9.5%), BSE Bankex index (up 8.1%), BSE IT index (up 7.7%), BSE Power index (up 6.5%) and BSE Metal index (up 6.4%). BSE Mid-Cap index (up 6.3%) and Small-Cap index (up 4.8%).

Jet Airways surged by over 7% to Rs548. Reports stated that the company would sell 10% stake to FIIs before rights offer. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs558 and a low of Rs512 and recorded volumes of over 32,000 shares on BSE.

Aurobindo Pharma further gained by over 4% to Rs258 after the company on Monday announced that they acquired TAD Italy, a generic company with 70 ready-to-market products, for an undisclosed amount. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs261 and a low of Rs250 and recorded volumes of over 37,000 shares on BSE.

Sun Pharma slipped by 2.1% to Rs1252. According to reports, the USFDA has asked the US subsidiary of Sun Pharmaceuticals to withdraw many batches of its generic Metformin Hydrochloride tablets used for treating diabetes, citing efficacy and quality issues. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs1300 and a low of Rs1240 and recorded volumes of over 4,00,000 shares on BSE.

JP Associates rallied by over 16% to Rs233 after the company announced that they would sell 1% stake in unit to ICICI Bank. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs236 and a low of Rs207 and recorded volumes of over shares 78,00,000 on BSE.

Jyoti Structures surged by over 4% to Rs162 after the company said that they secured order worth US$39.64mn from Uganda Electricity. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs170 and a low of Rs157 and recorded volumes of over 25,000 shares on BSE.

Reliance Industries, manufacturers of petrochemicals, synthetic fibers and textile, plans to close down all the petroleum retail outlets owned by it directly, according to reports. The rising crude prices and the absence of government subsidies have made operations unviable, the report stated. The scrip ended at Rs2314 gaining by 5.1% after hitting an intra-day high of Rs2325 and a low of Rs2220 and recorded volumes of over 8,00,000 shares on BSE.

Four Soft was up by 1% to Rs23 after the company declared that they secured software contract from IAL Group. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs24 and a low of Rs22 and recorded volumes of over 2,00,000 shares on BSE.

One ought to keep one's antennas on high alert to gauge any incidents. The immediate event to watch is the upcoming F&O expiry on Thursday. The market may witness some extra volatility. So traders are advised to protect their profits

Corporate Front Page

SBI secures full bank license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore to establish up to 25 outlets. (ET)
L&T wins US$240mn deal for building four ships. (Mint)
Phoenix Mills buys 25 acres land in Bangalore from GKW for Rs3.2bn. (Mint)
IOC expects to save Rs10mn a day on transportation once its proposed 15mtpa refinery and petrochem complex starts operations in 2011. (Mint)
The Government has stayed plan to reduce assured return on equity on negotiated power projects on opposition by NTPC. (Mint)
Strides Arcolab gets first US approval for HIV drug. (Mint)
HSBC Financial's stake in Yes Bank up at 4.88%. (Mint)
Kotak Mahindra Bank plans to lend 30% more in the next 12 months. (Mint)
Nortel wins US$100mn GSM deal from BSNL. (BL)
Jet Airways plans to dilute stake by 10%. (BS)
Reliance Power to spend Rs30bn for mines to fuel Sasan project. (BS)
Voltas not to hike prices of air-conditioners despite rising input costs. (BL)
ONGC targets 29.04MT crude production in 2008-09. (BL)
Gail sets gas transmission target of around 81.5mmscmd in 2008-09. (BL)
Nilkamal to invest Rs1.5bn by 2011 to expand its furniture retail chain. (BL)
Union Bank likely to post lower credit growth this fiscal at around 20% against projected 23-25%. (BL)
Federal Bank to open 26 branches across 11 states today. (BL)
SBI to raise Rs62.7bn through foreign currency bond issue. (ET)
The Government plans to divest 5% stake through follow-on public offers in companies including MMTC, STC, Concor and SCI. (ET)
GTL promoters increase stake from 34.36% to 37.05%. (ET)
Aurobindo Pharma looking for strategic overseas buy-outs to double revenues. (ET)
PFC ties-up with Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency to fund renewable projects. (ET)
Bombay Dyeing, L&T JV to jointly bid for development projects in Mumbai and other cities. (ET)
Eicher Motors to mull major capacity expansion plan ahead of JV for trucks with Volvo. (ET)
Corporation Bank to raise Rs5bn through bonds to meet capital requirements. (ET)
Religare to acquire UK broking firm Hichens, Harrison & Co for US$100mn. (ET)
REL buys back 250,000 shares through open market purchases on first day of share buyback programme. (FE)
Tata Chemicals to raise US$850mn to part fund its US$1bn acquisition of US-based General Chemicals Industries Products. (FE)
Ministry of Commerce to consider waiving off 26.33% duty levied on coal exported by Coal India. (FE)

Economic Front Page

Car manufacturers consider price hikes on input cost pressures. (BS)
FDI cap in DTH to go up to 74%. (BS)
ECB policy likely to be relaxed; cap for current financial year may go up to US$28-30bn. (BS)
Cement, power companies to buy ships to cut costs. (BL)
RBI grants license to Singapore banks, DBS and United Overseas Bank. (ET)
Steel makers agree to stop exports, forego DEPB benefits and supported reducing import duty on the alloy. (ET)
CPI wants to prevent the Government from acquiring lands and enforce trade union laws in SEZs. (FE)
Indian companies witnessed a slowdown in ECB and FCCB mop-up in November-January, says RBI. (FE)
I&B Ministry gives approval to hike FDI to 24% from 20% in FM radio operations. (FE)

RIL, RCom March 2008 futures at premium

Turnover in F&O segment surges

Nifty March 2008 futures were at 4901.50, at a premium of 24 points as compared to spot closing of 4877.50.

The NSE's futures & options (F&O) segment turnover was Rs 66,627.57 crore, which was higher than Rs 42,610.26 crore on Monday, 24 March 2008.

Reliance Industries (RIL) March 2008 futures were at premium at 2318.50 compared to the spot closing of 2313.80.

Reliance Communications (RCom) March 2008 futures were at premium at 539.25 compared to the spot closing of 538.50.

Reliance Energy March 2008 futures were at discount at 1292 compared to the spot closing of 1298.50.

In the cash market, the S&P CNX Nifty gained 267.65 points or 5.81% at 4877.50.

JP Associates, KSB Pumps, Sun Pharma

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries
Cluster: Ugly Duckling
Recommendation: Buy
Price target: Rs1,475
Current market price: Rs1,252

Exclusivities galore!

Key points

• Sun Pharmaceuticals (Sun) has received the final approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for its abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) to manufacture and market Amifostine injection 500mg, the therapeutic equivalent of MedImmune's Ethyol. Being the first to file an ANDA for generic Ethyol with a Para IV certification, Sun has been awarded a 180-day marketing exclusivity for the product. We do not exclude the possibility of an at-risk launch by Sun, in which case Sun could generate $14 million in revenues, leading to incremental earnings of Rs1. 4 per share.
• The company has received tentative approval for generic Gemzar, for which it had filed an ANDA containing a Para IV certification. Gemzar, or generic gemcitabine injection, is Eli Lilly's anti-cancer drug with annual sales of $680 million in the USA. According to our calculations, the launch of generic Gemzar under exclusivity for 180 days could yield revenues and profits of $51 million and $25 million respectively, translating into incremental earnings of Rs4.8 per share for Sun.
• In the last one month, Sun has received three final approvals from the USFDA--for benzonatate capsules, fosphenytoin sodium injection and torsemide tablets. Additionally, Sun has also received tentative approval for divalproex sodium delayed release tablet, which is the generic version of Abbott's anti-epileptic drug, Depakote, with annual sales of $755 million. We expect the final approval for generic Depakote to come through in July 2008, upon the expiry of the patent. However, the market for this product is crowded with numerous players already having tentative approvals and hence we expect the gains from this product to be limited.
• There are two positive developments related to Sun's bid to acquire Taro Pharmaceuticals (Taro). On the one hand, Sun has acquired the 9.4% stake of Brandes, which is one of the major institutional investors in Taro and was opposing Sun's bid for Taro. Following the acquisition, Sun's stake in Taro has increased from 25% earlier to 34.4%. On the other hand, Taro, in its declaration of its preliminary unaudited financials for CY2007, has reported a very strong operating performance, which is positively surprising. The Taro acquisition is not part of our current estimate and will provide upside to our FY2010 earnings estimate, if Sun is successful in its bid.
• With the base business performing well, clarity on the launch of generic Effexor XR under exclusivity, the receipt of USFDA approval for and the subsequent launch of generic Gemzar, the potential launch of generic Ethyol under exclusivity and the progress on the Taro acquisition will act as near-term triggers for the stock. At the current market price of Rs1,252, Sun is valued at 25.1x FY2008E and 19.4x FY2009E fully diluted earnings. We reiterate our Buy recommendation on the stock with a price target of Rs1,475.

KSB Pumps
Cluster: Emerging Star
Recommendation: Buy
Price target: Rs451
Current market price: Rs307

Price target revised to Rs451

Result highlights

• KSB Pumps' Q4CY2007 results were slightly ahead of our expectations, both on the top line and the profitability front. The net sales for the quarter rose by 21.7% to Rs131.8 crore.
• After a couple of disappointing quarters, the profitability improved substantially during this quarter as the overall margin improved by 60 basis points year on year (yoy) and by 770 basis points sequentially to 19.1%. On a segmental basis, the profit before interest and tax (PBIT) margin of the pump division rose to 15.6% (up 220 basis points yoy and 860 basis points sequentially) while that of the valve division stood at 25.1% (down 30 basis points yoy but up 610 basis points sequentially).
• We believe that the profitability of the company improved on the back of higher contribution of the project business, which carries higher margins. We understand that the order book of the company in the project business is growing at about 40% yoy. Considering this, we continue to expect strong revenue booking in the subsequent quarters also.
• A higher other income, stable interest and depreciation costs, and lower taxes led to a 62.1% growth in the net profit to Rs19.6 crore.
• In view of the slower growth this year, particularly in the first nine months, we are downgrading our earnings estimate for CY2008 by 18.8% to Rs32.2. We shall introduce our CY2009 estimate in our subsequent update.
• Considering the buoyancy in its user segments, particularly refineries and the power sector, we maintain our positive outlook on the company. At the current market price of Rs307, the stock is trading at 9.5x its CY2008E earnings and is available at an enterprise value (EV)/earnings before interest, depreciation, tax and amortisation (EBIDTA) of 5.2x. We maintain our Buy recommendation on the stock with a revised price target of Rs451.

Jaiprakash Associates
Cluster: Ugly Duckling
Recommendation: Buy
Price target: Rs390
Current market price: Rs233

Stake sale in Jaypee Infratech

Key points

• ICICI Bank buys 1% stake in Jaypee Infratech Ltd (JIL) for Rs250 crore, thereby valuing the company at Rs25,000 crore. This is largely in line with our estimates of Rs24,400 crore. JIL also obtains long term financing of Rs900 crore from ICICI Bank.
• The stake sale and closure of long-term financing from ICICI Bank is a positive development both in terms of raising required resources and boosting investor confidence.
• At the current market price, the stock is trading at 41x its estimated FY2009 earnings. We have revised the sum-of-the-parts (SOTP) based price target to Rs390 to reflect the de-rating of some of its businesses in line with the prevailing market conditions. We maintain our Buy call on the stock.