Rupee on a downslide

The spot rupee today reached a fresh 13-month, intra-day low of 43.20 against the dollar following heavy buying of the US currency by oil companies and by banks for non-deliverable forward (NDF) market arbitrage.

The rupee, however, recovered to close stronger at 42.97 following selling of dollars by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as a part of the indirect intervention to stem the rupee depreciation, dealers said. Since the beginning of the month, the rupee has lost almost 7.5 per cent from 40.00 to a dollar to 42.96.

RBI had last sold dollars before the announcement of the annual monetary policy on April 29, 2008, to keep the rupee in the range of 39.90-40.00 to a dollar. "But for the selling of dollars by nationalised banks on behalf of the central bank to the tune of around $500-750 million, the rupee would have easily breached 43.30-43.40 to a dollar," said a dealer.

Dealers added that the selling happened around 43.20 in the spot dollar market and there was not much sales in the forward market.

"This is one of the reasons for the enhanced liquidity in the market, which is evident through a rise in reverse repo bids from around Rs 20,000 crore last week to Rs 36,000 crore on Thursday," said a dealer.

Since crude oil prices reached a high of nearly $136 a barrel in the international markets, the rupee opened weaker at 42.98-43 after closing on Wednesday at 42.85-86 to a dollar. The outlook on the Indian economy has been benign and there are no fresh inflows, while the demand has led importers, both oil and non-oil, to buy dollars aggressively, a dealer of a private bank said.

NDF is the derivatives market, where foreign investors take a position on the rupee-dollar exchange rate in the overseas market.

At present, the view on the rupee is bearish, which may lead to the purchase of dollars in the local market to be invested overseas. These markets mostly operate in Singapore and Hong Kong and banks or companies with active subsidiaries or branches in these countries play in the market.

Banks in India are buying dollars cheaper by 3-4 paise in the one- or two-month forward to sell it at a higher spread in the overseas market and earn profit.

Following a panic buying of dollars by oil companies, which preferred to book long-term contracts rather than the short-term ones, the annualised premia for the six-month and one-year forward dollars closed higher at 1.89 per cent and 1.39 per cent against 1.71 per cent and 1.30 per cent on Wednesday.

Bulls pray for a better day

Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense.

With so much talk these days on oil prices (they have cooled off a little), some of us may even be losing our common sense. Meanwhile, the Congress-led Government, which yesterday marked its fourth anniversary, is definitely feeling the heat from soaring crude prices. The Prime Minister says inflation will come down in the next 2-3 months. That's a tall and bold claim to make in the face of clear signs that crude oil may remain higher for a considerable time to come. Top global brokerages have hiked their forecast for oil prices for the year. Goldman Sachs sees crude hitting $200 per barrel in the next 24 months. Surging oil prices have become the single-biggest challenge facing the global economy, and it will be a while before one can heave a sigh of relief. Having said that its possible that the crude bubble may bust, especially if there is a mass exodus from funds. But, given the current momentum and fundamental factors backing it, looks like high oil prices are here to stay.

This will only add to the list of worries for the market, what with the economy slowing and inflation at multi-month high. A weakening local currency coupled with foreign capital outflows and faltering momentum in India Inc's earnings growth will continue to keep investors edgy. The long-term may look promising, but most market players are probably not even thinking that far. They are more concerned with the near-term outlook, which unfortunately doesn't appear to be all that bright. Today, we could see a better opening and hopefully a good end to what has been a tumultuous week. The weekly inflation data has the potential to swing the mood of the market either way. Plus, one has to continuously keep an eye on global markets as well.

Meanwhile, the Government has denied reports of rationing of transportation fuels; stopping of supply of normal fuels in the metros and freeze on new LPG connections. It has clarified that it has not issued any such directions to the OMCs, which have been advised to rectify the situation.

FIIs were net sellers of Rs5.37bn (provisional) in the cash segment on Thursday while local institutions were net buyers of Rs4.15bn. In the F&O segment, foreign funds were net sellers of Rs2.48bn. On Wednesday, foreign funds were net sellers of Rs6.1bn in the cash segment. Mutual Funds were net buyers of Rs131mn.

Key Results Today: BHEL, Crompton Greaves, Federal Bank, Geojit Financial, ITC, India Glycol, Mount Everest Mineral, Munjal Showa, Repro India and VIP Industries.

US stock indices ended marginally higher on Thursday after a two-day selloff that was sparked by record high crude oil prices. Market sentiment improved as oil prices softened from the $135 per barrel level. Also, an unexpected drop in jobless claims countered analyst recommendations to sell shares of brokerages.

The S&P 500 added 3.64 points, or 0.3%, to 1,394.35. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 24.43 points, or 0.2%, to 12,625.62. The Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 16.31 points, or 0.7%, to 2,464.58.

Market breadth was positive. More than three stocks climbed for every two that fell on the New York Stock Exchange.

Stocks had been stronger in the early afternoon, but the advance lost some steam by the close, ahead of the long holiday weekend. All US financial markets are closed on Monday for Memorial Day, and some Wall Street players could make it a four-day weekend.

Wall Street tumbled in the previous two sessions, with the Dow losing more than 425 points, as investors reacted to soaring oil and gas prices, in addition to a gloomy economic and inflation outlook from the Federal Reserve.

The focus this week has been on oil prices and how its rise could hurt consumer spending - already hit by the housing sector meltdown and a slowing economy. Markets on Friday will likely take a cue from the April existing-home sales report, due out before the start of trade.

US light crude oil for July delivery hit a new electronic trading record of $135.09 a barrel before pulling back to settle at $130.81 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a decline of about $2.36.

The national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas rose to a record $3.831 from the previous day's record high for gas.

COMEX gold for August delivery fell $10.20 to settle at $923 an ounce. The dollar rose versus the euro and yen. Treasury prices tanked, raising the yield on the 10-year note to 3.91% from 3.81% late on Wednesday.

In the day's economic news, prices of homes sold in the first quarter fell 3.1%, according to a US government report. It was the biggest quarterly decline since the agency started keeping records 17 years ago.

Another report showed that the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment fell last week, surprising economists who were expecting a slight rise.

Ford said it will cut production through the rest of 2008 amid rising oil prices and the sluggish economy, and is no longer expecting to return to profitability next year. Ford shares slumped 8.2% and dragged on fellow automaker GM.

UBS said it would raise about $15.5bn in capital at a deep discount below the current share price. The investment bank also said it sold subprime and other mortgage-backed assets to a new investment fund run by BlackRock for $15bn.

European shares ended up after two days of losses, as a reversal in oil prices brought relief to stocks sensitive to consumer spending and growing fuel costs. The pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 index rose 0.4% to 324.41. Germany's DAX 30 rose 0.4% to 7,070.33, while the French CAC-40 ended nearly unchanged at 5,029.74. The UK's FTSE 100 couldn't hold onto early gains and fell 0.3% to 6,181.60.

In the emerging markets, the IPC index in Mexico was up 0.4% at 31,245. The RTS index in Russia fell 1.4% to 2433 while the ISE National 30 index in Turkey fell 0.9% to 49,916. the Brazil market was shut for a holiday.

Can the bulls bounce back

Another weak session comes to an end with the benchmark Sensex closing below the 17k mark and the Nifty index losing over 90 points. The gap down opening could be attributed to the weakening global cues and all round selling over the bourses. Rising crude oil prices and a weak start to equity markets across Europe proved to be a sentiment dampener. US light crude oil for July delivery set a closing record of $133.17 in New York Mercantile Exchange trading, up more than $4 a barrel.

All the BSE Sectoral indices ended in negative terrain, with BSE Bankex and BSE Realty indices slipping over 2.6% each. Even the broader indices i.e. BSE Mid-Cap and the Small-Cap indices witnessed selling pressure.

Finally, the BSE benchmark Sensex ended 336 points lower to close at 16,907 and the Nifty index slipped 92 points to close at 5,025.

Overall about 1,040 stocks advanced; 1,684 stocks declined while 67 stocks remained unchanged. Among the 50-Nifty 45 stocks ended in down and 5 stocks ended in green.

Bajaj Holdings gained by over 3% to Rs697 after the company said that it plans to set up Economic Zone in Aurangabad. The company also said that Bajaj Finserve, Bajaj Auto would list on exchanges May 26. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs697 and a low of Rs641 and recorded volumes of over 1,00,000 shares on NSE.

Praj Industries ended lower by 2.5% at Rs212. The company announced that it received a Rs1.20bn contract for supply of key equipment to Vivergo Fuels, UK through its subsidiary, BioCnergy Europa B. V. (a Joint Venture with Aker Solutions, Netherlands). The plant is designed to produce approximately 400mn litres of fuel ethanol a year (1,200,000 litres per day). The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs222 and a low of Rs210 and recorded volumes of over 38,00,000 shares on BSE.

Hindustan Zinc dropped by 4.5% to Rs717. The company announced that it cut lead prices by Rs2,300 per ton to Rs1,06,300 and kept zinc prices unchanged. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs745 and a low of Rs714 and recorded volumes of over 1,00,000 shares on BSE.

M&M slipped by 2.2% to Rs652. According to reports, the company signed a term sheet with Kinetic Motors, in its bid to acquire 76% stake in the company valued at about Rs1.20bn. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs657 and a low of Rs650 and recorded volumes of over 41,000 shares on BSE.

Infosys edged lower by half a percent to Rs1860. The company is exploring options to restore its organisational structure and has hired consultants. The company also intends to increase the spend on education and training of its employees by 15-20% as compared to the Rs7bn spent last year, according to reports. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs1898 and a low of Rs1847 and recorded volumes of over 2,00,000 shares on BSE.

Ranbaxy Labs was in poor health and ended lower by half a percent at Rs498. According to reports, the company has sold off its land and building to its group companies at Rs900mn and bought 24.9% stake at Rs934mn in its other group company Shimal Labs. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs505 and a low of Rs493 and recorded volumes of over 1,00,000 shares on BSE.

ONGC ended down by 1.5% to Rs924. Reports, stated that the company is planning to sell 30-40% stake in the two blocks won in Vietnam in 2006. There were also buzz that ONGC has infused Rs50bn in western offshore fields. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs937 and a low of Rs916 and recorded volumes of over 2,00,000 shares on BSE.

Corporate News

An increasing number of dealers have stopped accepting BPCL's petro and smartfleet cards after the company cut commission rates. (Mint)
Subhash Chandra exists from Centrum Capital. (Mint)
IndiaBulls Real Estate pays its UK listed entity Rs4.5bn more than estimated by independent valuers. (Mint)
Providence Equity Partners get 20% in Idea Cellular unit for US$640mn. (Mint)
HT Media's 'Hindustan' launched in Uttarakhand. (Mint)
HPCL seeks borrowing limit hike by Rs50bn. (Mint)
SCI's management says it's not affected by the global credit crisis. (Mint)
Videocon Industries plans major global retail foray under 'VC' brand. (BS)
Bajaj Auto expects flat sales in FY09. (BS)
Bharti Airtel ties up with global smartphone company HTC. (BS)
Hewlett Packard clarified that it will not make an open offer for Mphasis shares. (BS)
Tata Communication has designed detection and mitigation service to defend against cyber attacks on critical network infrastructure and business applications. (BS)
Tata Elxi announced setting up two new development centers in Coimbatore and Hyderabad and further expand its facility in Thiruvananthapuram. (BS)
Spice Telecom cuts STD and roaming rates. (BS)
Gail India to get into gas pipeline deal with J&K government. (BS)
Satyam and GE Healthcare enter into agreement to support customers deploying healthcare solutions based on GE Centricity Enterprise software. (BS)
Hyundai Motor raises prices by 2%. (BS)
Sail signs MoU with Rajasthan State Mines & Minerals for long term supply of low-silica limestone. (BS)
Madhya Pradesh Power Transmission Company agreed to buy 1,241MW power produced by Reliance Power's MP plant. (BS)
Aditya Birla group plans to invest Rs800bn in Orissa. (BS)
Essar Oil offers Vadinar output to ease fuel deficit. (BS)
RCom talks to television vendors for DTH launch. (BS)
Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation firms up plans for LNG terminal at Mundhra. (BL)
Dr. Reddy's launches gastritis drug. (BL)
Trent adopts franchise model to reach out to smaller cities. (BL)
Bajaj Finserv to set up asset management and distribution company. (BL)
TCS secures ~Rs10bn contract for processing Indian passport applications. (ET)
ICICI Ventures, M&M teams up for acquiring Belgian gear-maker VCST Industrial Products for ~Rs15.5bn. (ET)
Welspun India secures supplier of the year award for quality in home products. (ET)
Omaxe ties-up with Leander Sport to build and manage spa, sport and fitness centers at five locations in the country. (ET)
TCS, Wipro, HP, Infosys and Satyam been shortlisted to commence the integration of Railways commercial portal. (ET)
The Hinduja Group receives approval for setting up a World Knowledge Center in Mumbai. (ET)
IDBI Bank looking to seal an acquisition this year and is looking at both private and public sector banks for this purpose. (ET)
Jaypee Group Company acquires Bina Power from Aditya Birla group for Rs1.5-1.75bn. (ET)
Reliance Infrastructure set to secure MP power supply contract. (ET)
Jindal Steel & Power may secure mining license for 20bn tons of iron ore deposits of El Mutun mine in Bolivia. (ET)
Tata Elxsi to triple manpower on overseas design orders. (FE)
Bank of Maharashtra opens its 1,377th branch in India. (FE)
ONGC refuses to accept oil bonds as payment for its crude oil sales to PSU refiners. (FE)
Government approves merger of Sponge Iron India with NMDC. (FE)
Essar Oil offers to wipe out most fuel deficit in the country by supplying the entire output from its Vadinar Refinery. (FE)
Expansion plans of SAIL and RINL on track to double capacity by 2010 at a collective cost of Rs630bn says government. (FE)

Economic News

SEBI defers upfront margin payment by institutional investors in the cash market. (Mint)
The UPA government will not allow relaxation of labour laws in tax free zones. (BS)
Centre plans package to give relief to oil companies. (BS)
Government authorized Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) to start land acquisition for new projects ahead of formal sanctions. (BS)
Bangalore's new airport starts operations today. (BS)
Government may relax ban imposed on exports of various commodities. (ET)
Planning Commission cautions the civil aviation ministry against setting up larger then required airport infrastructure in Kolkata and Chennai. (ET)
Drug companies may get a reprieve on price caps for brands containing price-controlled ingredients. (ET)
Karnataka real estate developers decide to raise home price by 3-8% from June 10. (ET)
Petroleum minister to meet PM on Friday to discuss raising retail prices. (FE)
Ficci, CII and Assocham seek finance minister's intervention for service tax exemption. (FE)
Punjab infrastructure Development Board approves Rs200bn worth projects. (FE)

Company Background - TV18

Television Eighteen (TV18), India's premier business and consumer news broadcaster and leading media content provider, was incorporated on 24th Sep 1993 as Television Eighteen India Private Ltd. It Became a public limited Company in 2nd November 1994 and Subsequently Renamed as Television Eighteen India on 2nd Jan 1995. Over the last decade, the Company has provided prime time television content to almost all leading satellite channels in India including BBC, Star Plus, Sony Entertainment Television, Zee, MTV and Discovery. Raghav Bahl and Sanjay Ray Chaudhury are the promoters of the Company.

CNBC TV18 is India's leading business news channel. The channel is a joint venture between CNBC Asia-Pacific and Television Eighteen India Ltd., with TV18 holding 90 percent of the stake.

TV18 owns studios in New Delhi and Mumbai and has a news gathering network of over 200 journalists across the country.

At Present the TV18 India Ltd five Subsidiaries namely Television Eighteen Mauritus Ltd, e-eighteen.com Ltd, I.News.com, Eighteen Entertainment India Ltd, Money Control Dot Com India Ltd and SRH Broadcast News Holdings pvt Ltd.

In 1996 the Company set up a wholly owned Subsidiary in Mauritius i.e's Television Eighteen Mauritius Ltd on receiving requisite consent from the Department of company affairs and reserve Bank of India. It also entered in to joint venture through its subsidiary to launch Asia Business News India (ABNi), the countries first dedicated 24-hour business news information channel.

In 1997, this venture suffered a major setback as ABNi, which was providing around 50% of the Companies revenue closed down following the merger of its parent, ABN with CNBC Asia, but regained its relationship the CNBC in 2003. CNBC-TV18 will now jointly brand a channel which was operated by TV18s Subsidiary and TV18 shall now own nearly 90% stake in the Channel and balance held by the CNBC Asia Pacific

In Dec 1999, the company came out with a public issue of 29,36,000 equity shares of Rs.10/- each at a premium of Rs.170/- per share. In march 2000 it incorporated e-eighteen.com pvt ltd, a subsidiary to house its internal interests. The subsidiary has acquired Moneycontrol Dot Com Private Ltd, the Company owning the highly successful financial portal, Money control.com

During 2001-2002, the entertainment part of the Companies business was hived off to 100% subsidiary viz Eighteen Entertainment India Ltd.

During 2002-2003 the company successfully restructured its relationship with CNBC in accordance with the new government guidelines for new channels. Tv18 previously held a 49% stake in the CNBC India Joint Venture in Mauritius. Under the new Guidelines CNBC-TV18 is now a jointly branded channel to be operated by TV18's subsidiary and TV18 shall now own a near 90% stake in the Channel company and the balance 10% being held by CNBC Asia Pacific. TV18 has also prematurely terminated its ad sales representation relationship with SET (Sony Entertainment Television) in April 2002 and has set up a dedicated inhouse marketing and sales team for the channel.

In 2004 A Large 40,000 Sq Ft plus facility was set up in Mumbai with state-of-the-art broadcast equipment and studios.

During 2005 the Company entered in to General News Space. To Facilite this ambitious expansion, the Company started work on a 60,000 Sq ft studio in Noida, which will be operational in the fourth quarter of the year. Turner International (Turner) and Global Broadcast News (GBN), a TV18 Group Company, announced a partnership to launch a co-branded, 24-hour, English-language general news channel in India. Renowned TV journalist Rajdeep Sardesai spearheads GBN's foray into the general news space as the Editor-in-Chief of the service. The co-branded service, CNN-IBN, will build upon the strong foundation of TV18's newsgathering experience and infrastructure in India, bolstered by CNN's eminent and extensive global news network.

Under the terms of the agreement, GBN's proposed channel - formerly known as India Broadcast News (IBN) and now co-branded as CNN-IBN - will have access to CNN's trademark live breaking news as well as key feature programmes. This unique alliance will, for the first time ever, enable Indian viewers to view local news as well as relevant global news from CNN, the world's news leader, on the same platform. The new channel will focus on providing robust and high quality news from every corner of India with a complete commitment to the needs and aspirations of the Indian viewer, while CNN International will continue to deliver global news to Indian viewers.

Headquartered in New Delhi, the channel will be supported by over 20 bureaus nationwide, along with a team of experienced newspersons and production staff, backed by TVl8's state-of-the-art broadcast infrastructure and newsgathering technology.

GBN, a TV18 Group Company, is a 74:26 joint venture between the TV18 Group and professionals - Rajdeep Sardesai, Sameer Manchanda and Haresh Chawla. GBN's charter is to launch channels in the general news space under the editorial leadership of Sardesai, one of India's most renowned TV journalists.

The company during 2005-2006, acquired a 50% stake in Channel 7 - a general news channel in Hindi, owned by Dainik Jagran Groupin April 2006. TV 18 group has recently revamped the editorial team and relaunched the channel with a new international look in June 2006. The company has done a JV with Asia's leading e-recruitment provider-jobstreet.com for a job search portal and launched yatra.in- India's first integrated online travel services company founded by TV18 and Norwest Venture Partners.

Company Background - Pantaloon India

Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd (PRIL), previously known as Pantaloon Fashions (India) Ltd (PFIL) is India's leading retail company with presence across food, fashion, home solutions and consumer electronics, books and music, health, wellness and beauty, general merchandise, communication products, e-tailing and Liesure & Entertainment.

Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd, Headquartered in Mumbai (Bombay), operates through 3.5 million square feet of retail space, has over 100+ stores and 30+ cities in India. The company owns and manages multiple retail formats catering to a wide cross-section of the Indian society and its width and depth of merchandise helps it capture almost the entire consumption basket of the Indian consumer.

Its products are marketed under the brand name Pantaloon and Bare Necessities through a network of over 300 dealers spanning the metro and class-I cities in the country. PRIL also markets its products through a network of exclusive retail shops and Pantaloon Connections in the major metropolitan cities.

Founded in 1987, Pantaloon Retail forayed into modern retail in 1997 with the opening up of a chain of department stores, Pantaloons. In 2001, it launched Big Bazaar, a hypermarket chain, followed by Food Bazaar, a supermarket chain. It went on to launch Central, a first of its kind, seamless mall located in the heart of major Indian cities. Some of it's other formats include, Collection I (home improvement products), E-Zone (consumer electronics), Depot (books, music, gifts and stationaries), aLL (fashion apparel for plus-size individuals), Shoe Factory (footwear) and Blue Sky (fashion accessories). It has recently launched its etailing venture, futurebazaar.com.

Some of the companies subsidiaries include Home Solutions Retail India Ltd, Pantaloon Food Product (India) Ltd, Footmart Retail (India) Ltd, Pan Indian Restaurants Ltd, Future Media (India) Ltd, Future Logistic Solutions Limited, CIG Infrastructure Pvt Ltd, KB Infin Pvt Ltd, Kshitij Investment and Advisory Co Ltd, and ConvergeM Retail (India) Ltd, which leads the group's foray into home improvement, e-tailing and communication products, respectively. Other group companies include Pantaloon Industries Ltd, Galaxy Entertainment and Indus League Clothing. The company has also entered joint venture agreements with a number of companies including ETAM group, Gini & Jony, Liberty Shoes and Planet Retail, a company that owns the franchisee of international brands like Marks & Spencer, Debenhams and Guess in India.

A new Trouser manufacturing plant at MIDC Tarapur at a installed capacity of 1200 Trousers per day was commissioned on early 2001.

The company has acquired the trademark and exclusive licensing rights for apparel brand Norules in India,from US based Norules Inc in 2003. During 2004,the comapny has entered into strategic alliance with Arvind Brands Ltd.

During 2005-2006, the company, has expanded its capacity of stiching machines from 300 Nos to 373 Nos to produce Apparels.

The company signed a MOU with Talwalkars Better Value Fitness Pvt to form a 50:50 Joint Venture company for retailing of fitness/wellness related products and for the rendering of health and fitness related services. The company also signed a MOU with Manipal Health Systems Pvt Ltd to form a 50-50 Joint Venture company for rendering healthcare related services and sale of healthcare products.

The company has entered in to a strategic alliance agreement with Ruchi Soya Industries Limited for sale of refined edible oil in the stores of the Company.

The Company has on July 31, 2006 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Blue Foods Private Limited to form a 50-50 Joint Venture Company for setting up food courts and speciality restaurants across the country.

During 2005-2006, the company transferred its shareholding in its subsidiaries i.e, Ambit Investment Advisory company Ltd and Kshitij Investment Advisory company Ltd to its subsidiary KB Infin Pvt Ltd.

During 2005-2006, the company also allotted on rights basis 44,78,720 equity shares of Rs.10/- each at premium of Rs.490/- per share aggregating to Rs.22393.60 lacs. The company also allotted 4,08,165 equity shares of Rs.10/- each on preferential basis.

The company has expansion plan to increase the retail space under control substantially. The total retail space at the end of 2005-06 stood at over 2.75 million square feet. The company has planned to roll out further retail space of 2.50 million square feet in the 2006-07 under various retailing formats it operates.

Stunner ! - IPO Rating - MCX India

CRISIL has assigned a CRISIL IPO Grade "5/5" (pronounced "five on five") to the proposed initial public offer of Multi-Commodity Exchange of India Ltd. (MCX). This grade indicates that the fundamentals of the issue are strong relative to other listed equity securities in India. However, this grade is not an opinion on whether the issue price is appropriate in relation to the issue fundamentals. The grade is not a recommendation to buy / sell or hold the graded instrument, or a comment on the graded instrument's future market price or its suitability for a particular investor.

CRISIL expects MCX to maintain its dominant market position in the commodities market, backed by product innovation and strong technological capabilities. Currently, MCX enjoys market leadership, with a share of 77 per cent in volumes traded on commodities exchanges in India. The company has consciously focused on commodities such as bullion, energy and metals, which are benchmarked to international prices. The high liquidity in these commodities and the low impact costs (comparable to other leading exchanges), along with MCX's strong technological capability - aided by its association with the promoter, FTIL, a leader in exchange related technology - are expected to help the company maintain its competitive advantage.

MCX's profitability and return indicators have been strong in the past 4 years. Growth is likely to moderate in the short term due to the impact of the commodity transaction tax (CTT). However, in the medium term, MCX's strong market position and continuous focus on product innovation would act as growth drivers. In the long term, growth could be spurred by the introduction of new instruments (like options) and participation by institutional players, once the necessary regulatory changes are in place.

Mr Jignesh Shah, the founder and Non-Executive Vice Chairman and Mr Joseph Massey, the MD & CEO of MCX, have been the driving force behind the company's business growth and product innovation. MCX also benefits from a strong and experienced senior management team as well as a highly capable product innovation and development team.

About the company and the issue
Multi-Commodity Exchange of India Pvt Ltd was incorporated on April 19, 2002. The proposed IPO is in the form of an offer for sale of 4 million shares by the promoters and a fresh issue of 6 million shares. Subsequent to the IPO, the promoters' stake in the company will reduce to 26.1 per cent.

On September 26, 2003, MCX received permanent recognition from the Government of India for facilitating online trading, clearing and settlement operations for commodity futures markets across the country. MCX offers trading in 56 different commodities categorised into various market segments such as bullion, energy, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, oil and oil seeds, cereals, pulses, plantations, spices, fibre and others. The company has leadership position in bullion, energy and metals trading in India.

Of the company's total turnover, bullion accounts for 53 per cent, metals for 28 per cent, energy for 16 per cent and agricultural commodities account for the rest. Globally, MCX is the largest silver exchange, second-largest natural gas exchange, third-largest gold, crude oil and copper exchange in terms of number of contracts traded in each of these commodities. MCX was the first exchange to launch futures trading in steel, crude oil and plastics in India. The company has launched weather indices such as RAINDEX - to track the progress of monsoon rains in locations such as Mumbai, Indore and Jaipur - and also trading in carbon credits on the exchange. MCX was also the first exchange to initiate evening trading sessions to coincide with trading on international exchanges such as London, New York and other international markets. The company's initiative to constantly innovate and develop new products is expected to help increase volumes.

For the year ended March 31, 2007, MCX reported a net profit of Rs 930 million on a turnover of Rs 2.0 billion, as compared with a net profit of Rs 375 million and revenues of Rs 1.0 billion in the previous year.

Rebounding dollar pushes precious metals down

 Precious metals prices drop as crude slips by more than $2 and dollar goes up

After being on a roll for the last few days, precious metal prices dropped today, Thursday, 22 May, 2008 after crude oil prices eased and the dollar once again rebounded against the rivals. The dual effect took some glitter off the precious metals today. Ealier this week, crude oil's rally to a fresh record high above $133 a barrel boosted the precious metal's appeal as an inflation hedge. Oil has doubled in the past year, fueling concern inflation will accelerate.

Gold has traditionally been used as a safe-haven asset against rising inflation. Investor sentiments are boosted by the fact that gold and silver are alternate sources of good investment in the face of declining dollar and rising energy prices. 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. On the other hand, a lower dollar pushes up precious metal prices as their demand lessens as it becomes cheaper for traders holding other currencies.

Comex Gold for June delivery fell $10.3 (1.1%) to close at $918.3 ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. During intra day trading, prices touched a high of $935.4/ounce. Last week, gold prices ended higher by $14 (1.6%). On 17 March, 2008 prices had skyrocketed to a high of $1,034/ounce. Prices have dropped by 10.2% since then.

This year, gold prices have gained 9.6% for the till date against a 7.6% drop for the dollar against the euro. For April, prices closed lower by 6.3%. For first quarter prices gained 10.7%. In January, prices gained 11%, the highest monthly gain since April 2006. For February, it gained 6%. But in March, prices succumbed and fell by 5.5%.

Comex Silver futures for July delivery fell 2.5 cents (0.2%) to $18.025 an ounce. Silver has gained 20.7% in 2008 till date. For April, it closed lower by 5.5%. Silver gained 16% in Q1. In January this year itself, prices climbed 14%. In February, it gained another 15%. For March, it ended lower by 13%. The metal had climbed 16% in FY 2007. The metal also has gained for seven straight years.

At the currency markets on Thursday, the dollar rose on speculation the Federal Reserve will raise borrowing costs by the end of the year to curb inflation. The dollar also got a lift against major rivals after better-than-expected weekly jobs data. The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of other major currencies, rose 0.4% to 72.18.

Since last September, Fed has axed interest rates seven times and brought it down to 2%. The ECB has kept rates unchanged at 4% since June, 2007.

Dollar weakness typically benefits dollar-denominated commodities, such as gold and crude oil, because it makes them cheaper for holders of other currencies. On the other hand strong dollar reduces the appeal of the metal as alternate source of investment.

Among major economic news of the day, the Labor Department reported that first-time claims for state unemployment benefits fell back in the latest week, dropping by 9,000 to 365,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis.

In the crude market today, oil futures dropped as much as 2.3% to $130.07 a barrel after earlier reaching a record $135.09. Yesterday, crude-oil futures climbed past $133 a barrel to close at another record level after government data showed that crude supplies unexpectedly dropped, marking their first decline in five weeks. It touched an all-time peak of $133.35.

Earlier during the week, crude oil rose after billionaire hedge-fund manager Boone Pickens said prices will reach $150 a barrel this year as demand outpaces supply. Last week, crude-oil futures rallied to a fresh record high near $128 a barrel as Goldman Sachs raised its second-half-of-the-year forecast for oil prices by 32% to $141.

At the MCX, gold prices for June delivery closed lower by Rs 96 (0.7%) at Rs 12,730 per 10 grams. Prices rose to a high of Rs 12,999 per 10 grams and fell to a low of Rs 12,710 per 10 grams during the day's trading.

At the MCX, silver prices for July delivery closed Rs 30 (0.1%) lower at Rs 24,897/Kg. Prices opened at Rs 24,990/kg and fell to a low of Rs 24,666/Kg during the day's trading.

Crude price eases a bit

 Prices drop by more than $2 as traders resort to four day profit booking

Crude-oil futures fell today, Thursday, 22 May, 2008 after the dollar rebounded and the traders resorted to profit booking after four days of massive rise in crude prices. Crude prices had been on a roll since the past few days and had crossed the $133/barrel for the first time yesterday.

Crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for July delivery today closed at $130.81/barrel (lower by $2.3/barrel or 1.8%) on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Price touched a high of $135.09 earlier during the day.

In the past four sessions, crude prices had gained more than 7%. Last week, crude prices closed higher by 29 cents. For the year, crude is up by 31% till date. Prices have more than doubled on a yearly basis.

At the currency markets on Thursday, the dollar rose on speculation the Federal Reserve will raise borrowing costs by the end of the year to curb inflation. The dollar also got a lift against major rivals after better-than-expected weekly jobs data. The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of other major currencies, rose 0.4% to 72.18.

Among major economic news of the day, the Labor Department reported that first-time claims for state unemployment benefits fell back in the latest week, dropping by 9,000 to 365,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis.

Yesterday, the Energy Department reported that crude supplies fell by 5.4 million barrels to 320.4 million for the week ended 16 May. Prior to that, supplies had climbed more than 12 million barrels in the past four weeks. Market was expecting a rise of 900,000 barrels for the latest week.

EIA also revealed that crude-oil imports averaged 9.2 million barrels per day last week, down 696,000 barrels per day from a week earlier. Meanwhile, refinery utilization rose to 87.9% of capacity from 86.6% a week ago. Still, motor gasoline supplies fell 800,000 barrels to 209.4 million barrels last week. Distillate stocks were up 700,000 barrels at 107.8 million barrels.

Last week, prices kissed $128 for first time after Goldman Sachs raised its forecast on Friday for the average price of West Texas Intermediate oil in the second half of 2008 to $141 a barrel from $107 a barrel. As per the company's reports, long-term oil prices will need to continue to rise to bring trend oil demand growth in line with trend supply growth. Credit Suisse Group AG and Societe Generale SA raised their oil price forecasts for 2008 and 2009 citing investor flows and limited supply.

U.S. natural gas inventories last week increased less than analysts forecast

Brent crude oil for June settlement today fell $2.19 (1.7%) to $130.51 on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The London benchmark rose 54% in FY 2007, the most since 1999 when prices more than doubled.

Natural gas futures climbed after a government report showed U.S. inventories last week increased less than analysts forecast. Gas for June delivery rose 5.7 cents (0.5%) to settle at $11.697 per million British thermal units.

EIA reported today that stockpiles were 3 billion cubic feet below the five-year average, compared with a 3 billion-cubic-foot surplus a week earlier. Supplies were down 302 billion cubic feet, or 16 percent, from a year earlier.

Against this backdrop, July reformulated gasoline closed at $3.3297 a gallon, down 7.03 cents, while July heating oil futures rose 4.43 cents to end at $3.9543 a gallon in New York after trading at a record high of $4.02 in the electronic trading session.

AAA reported today that regular retail gasoline prices jumped by 2.3 cents to a fresh record of $3.831 a gallon at USA. It's up 9.1% from a month ago.

Crude had ended FY 2007 substantially higher by $35 or 57%. It was crude's biggest yearly gain in five years.

At the MCX, crude oil for May delivery closed at Rs 5,661/barrel, higher by Rs 5 (0.08%) against previous day's close. Natural gas for July delivery closed at Rs 513.1/mmbtu, higher by Rs 9.7/mmbtu (1.9%).

Reliance Communications to launch videoconferencing services.

Reliance Communications, is gearing up to launch videoconferencing services across 1,100 cities in 113 countries, including the US, Europe, Japan and Middle East nations. The company has also initiated talks with global telecom operators to set up backbones and provide bandwidth for the operations.

The company planning its global videoconferencing foray through its 100% subsidiary Reliance Globalcom, which already has Internet protocol-enabled optical fibre network across the globe. The company is looking at hosting over 2 million simultaneous videoconferences across 70 countries covering 6 continents. RCom, which is already providing videoconferencing services in over 105 cities in the country, is also expanding its presence. The group had earlier entered into tie-ups with over 1,000 corporates, who are using the facility from Reliance World Stores. The company is also providing managed videoconferencing services to customers in the country.

The fast growing global potential of videoconference services provides interesting opportunities to expand its service portfolio using the fully-IP enabled 65,000 fibre Kms undersea cable network connecting 40 top business centers of the world. The present size of global videoconferencing industry is estimated to be around $11 billion (Rs 44,000 crore). In India, the videoconferencing market is growing at over 50 per cent on a year-on-year basis.

Ranbaxy strengthens presence in Yemen.

Homegrown pharma major Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd has commenced Yemen operations in collaboration with local Pharma Ltd. With this it has strengthened its presence in the Middle-East. Ranbaxy has now become the first Indian pharma company to have a strong presence in the Middle-East with operations in 11 countries.

The company has a strong productline with over 160 approvals so far in Yemen. It has commenced operation by introducing products to more than 350 doctors in the country. Ranbaxy would focus more on therapeutic areas such as anti-infectives, gastro-intestine, cholesterol lowering and anti-allergic in the country. It has also become the first company to be registered in Saudi Arabia and to receive the centralised GCC registration.

GMR Infrastructure Q4 PAT up 129%.

GMR Infrastructure has posted 129% growth in net profit after tax and minority interest at Rs 50.0 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2008 as compared to Rs 21.9 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2007. Net Revenues have increased 43% from Rs 619.6 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2007 to Rs 885.3 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2008.

For the year ended March 31, 2008, the company has posted a jump of 20% in net profit after tax and minority interest at Rs 210.1 crore for the year ended March 31, 2008 as compared to Rs 174.4 crore for the year ended March 31, 2007. Net Revenues have increased from Rs 1,696.7 crore for the year ended March 31, 2007 to Rs 2,294.8 crore for the year ended March 31, 2008.

GMR Infrastructure plans to invest Rs 2,400 crore this fiscal in various road projects. The company expects to commission four important road projects - two in Andhra Pradesh, one in Tamil Nadu and one in Ambala, by the end of the year.

Further GMR Infrastructure's unit GMR Energy Ltd has acquired a 5% stake in South Africa's Homeland Mining and Energy SA (Pty) Ltd, a unit of Canada's Homeland Energy Group Ltd. It also has an option to buy additional 45% stake in the company.

Bharti Airtel, Firstsource sign in $35 million outsourcing deal.

Bharti Airtel has signed a $35 million, three-year outsourcing agreement with BPO services provider Firstsource Solutions, which will offer both voice and backoffice services in areas such as customer accounting, VAS provisioning, fraud and credit monitoring, customer service, collections and customer retention to Airtel. While company officials declined to provide financial details, sources said the deal was valued at around $35 million.

In August 2005, Bharti had announced a Rs 1,000-crore deal with BPO firms IBM Daksh, MphasiS, TeleTech and Hinduja TMT to outsource its call centre operations. The Firstsource deal is another instance of the company's strategy to focus on its core areas of product innovation, marketing, brand building. Airtel has already outsourced its IT requirements to IBM and cellular networking operations of Nokia and Ericsson. However, the contract with Firstsource is more comprehensive as it includes mobile collection, welcome calling, VAS provisioning besides other services.

Nifty May 2008 futures at discount

 Turnover in F&O segment surges

Nifty May 2008 futures were at 5024, at a discount of 1.45 points as compared to spot closing of 5025.45.

The NSE's futures & options (F&O) segment turnover was Rs 45,076.17 crore, which was higher than Rs 39,481.17 crore on Wednesday, 21 May 2008.

Reliance Petroleum May 2008 futures were near spot price at 187.30 compared to the spot closing of 187.10.

Reliance Capital May 2008 futures were near spot price at 1391.50 compared to the spot closing of 1390.75.

Reliance Industries May 2008 futures were at premium at 2629 compared to the spot closing of 2626.05.

In the cash market, the S&P CNX Nifty lost 92.20 points or 1.80% at 5025.45.

OPEC head concerned about oil market volatility

OPEC head Abdalla Salem el-Badri on Wednesday said he was worried about volatility in the oil market as prices soared through the historic 130 dollars level for the first time.

"The Secretary General expressed concern about the volatility that has characterised the market in recent times," the Vienna-based cartel said in a statement from Caracas, where el-Badri met Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez as part of a weeklong working visit to OPEC members Venezuela and Ecuador.

Following his meeting with Chavez, el-Badri said, "The crude oil market remains well-supplied, with (developed world) stocks increasing above their five-year average.

"OPEC will continue to strive to bring stability to the oil market," the statement said, noting that el-Badri "also called on other stakeholders in the industry -- consumers, producers, investors -- to cooperate to find a lasting solution to the volatility."

El-badri stressed that OPEC remained committed "to working for the stability of the international oil market, noting that the current high oil prices are not influenced by market fundamentals, as the market is well supplied.

"OPEC will continue to monitor global oil markets regularly and is ready to act if and when necessary to ensure market stability and adequate supplies," the statement added.

OPEC has repeatedly said that the market is well supplied and that record prices reflect speculative investment activity rather than underlying supply and demand conditions.

US Federal Reserve sharply cuts growth forecast

The US Federal Reserve on Wednesday sharply cut its growth forecast for 2008 but suggested it may halt a string of drastic rate cuts aimed at boosting the sagging US economy.

The central bank predicted 2008 growth of 0.3 percent to 1.2 per cent, down from a January projection of 1.3 percent to 2 percent, according to the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee's April 30 meeting.

The Fed cut its benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage points to 2 percent at the April meeting, but the minutes indicate that inflation risks made it a difficult decision.

Consumer prices were projected to increase by 3.1 to 3.4 percent in 2008, up from 2.1 to 2.4 percent inflation expected in Fed's January forecast.

'Most members viewed the decision to reduce interest rates at this meeting as a close call,' the Fed minutes said. 'Although downside risks to growth remained, members were also concerned about the upside risks to the inflation outlook.'

Two of the board's 10 members voted against April's rate cut.

The economy expanded by 0.6 percent in the first quarter according to initial government estimates. Some economists believe the US has entered a recession.

The Fed's federal funds rate has been cut from 5.25 percent to two percent since September to combat a housing and mortgage crisis that has engulfed the world's largest economy.

NSE Bulk Deals to Watch - May 22 2008

 Date,Symbol,Security Name,Client Name,Buy/Sell,Quantity Traded,Trade Price / Wght. Avg. Price,Remarks
22-MAY-2008,HARRMALAYA,Harrisons Malayalam Ltd,ADROIT FINANCIAL SERVICES PVT LTD,BUY,133652,125.35,-
22-MAY-2008,HARRMALAYA,Harrisons Malayalam Ltd,PRASHANT JAYANTILAL PATEL,BUY,108111,125.74,-
22-MAY-2008,IFCI,IFCI Ltd.,AMBIT SECURITIES BROKING PVT. LTD.,BUY,4114137,64.20,-
22-MAY-2008,ISPATIND,Ispat Industries Limited,CLEAN FINANCE & INVESTMENT LTD,BUY,9146921,35.16,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,FIN BRAINS SECURITIES (INDIA) LTD.,BUY,123603,165.83,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,LEGEND COMMODITY & DERIVATIVES PRIVATE LIMITED,BUY,67776,165.82,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,LPC SECURITIES LTD,BUY,59369,165.29,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,MANSUKH SECURITIES & FINANCE LTD,BUY,81084,165.01,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,MBL & COMPANY LTD.,BUY,65359,164.40,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,PRASHANT JAYANTILAL PATEL,BUY,61673,169.44,-
22-MAY-2008,KOHINOOR,Kohinoor Foods Limited,A S CONFIN PVT.LTD.,BUY,157500,90.00,-
22-MAY-2008,SITASHREE,Sita Shree Food Products,ADROIT FINANCIAL SERVICES PVT LTD,BUY,112373,45.66,-
22-MAY-2008,UTTAMSTL,Uttam Galva Steels Limite,KSHITIJ VENKATESH RAJKUMAR,BUY,602061,42.62,-
22-MAY-2008,HARRMALAYA,Harrisons Malayalam Ltd,ADROIT FINANCIAL SERVICES PVT LTD,SELL,133652,125.20,-
22-MAY-2008,HARRMALAYA,Harrisons Malayalam Ltd,PRASHANT JAYANTILAL PATEL,SELL,108111,126.61,-
22-MAY-2008,HILTON,Hilton Metal Forging Limi,DEUTSCHE INTERNATIONAL TRUST CORP (MAURITIUS) LTD,SELL,67000,36.82,-
22-MAY-2008,IFCI,IFCI Ltd.,AMBIT SECURITIES BROKING PVT. LTD.,SELL,4127927,64.25,-
22-MAY-2008,ISPATIND,Ispat Industries Limited,CLEAN FINANCE & INVESTMENT LTD,SELL,9146921,35.17,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,FIN BRAINS SECURITIES (INDIA) LTD.,SELL,123603,165.96,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,LEGEND COMMODITY & DERIVATIVES PRIVATE LIMITED,SELL,67776,166.24,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,LPC SECURITIES LTD,SELL,59369,165.52,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,MANSUKH SECURITIES & FINANCE LTD,SELL,81084,165.01,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,MBL & COMPANY LTD.,SELL,65359,164.50,-
22-MAY-2008,JAYSREETEA,Jayashree Tea Ltd.,PRASHANT JAYANTILAL PATEL,SELL,61673,170.24,-
22-MAY-2008,KOHINOOR,Kohinoor Foods Limited,ALOSHA VANIJYA PVT LTD,SELL,160000,90.01,-
22-MAY-2008,SITASHREE,Sita Shree Food Products,ADROIT FINANCIAL SERVICES PVT LTD,SELL,112373,45.38,-

Post Session Commentary - May 22 2008

Indian market closed in deep red due to heavy selling pressure across key sectors on the back of crude oil prices and surging inflation. The domestic market opened on the weak note tracking the unfavouring cues from the US market. The market kept on hovering in the negative territory and remained extremely bearish till the end. Market was not able to change the investors' weak sentiment, as the international oil prices reached a new high of above $135 per barrel, Asian markets ended low and inflation worries demolished the market, which led the Sensex to fall below 17,000 mark. Also, the US Federal Reserve's steps to cut US economic growth forecasts and signaling of any rate cut further is unlikely also add to the sentiments. The IT stocks attract the investors confidence at the initial stage but it gave up its gains towards the end due to selling pressure across the counters. From the sectoral front, all indices ended in negative but capital goods and metal stocks faced heavy selling pressures. The market breadth was negative as 1684 stocks closed in red while 1040 stocks closed in green and 67 stocks remained unchanged.

The BSE Sensex closed lower by 336.05 points at 16,907.11 and NSE Nifty fell by 92.2 points to close at 5,025.45. Among the Sensex pack, only 1 stock ended in green while 29 stocks in red. The BSE Mid Cap and Small Cap closed lower by 98.80 points and 125.14 points at 7,049.25 and 8,663.84 respectively.

Losers from the BSE are Tata Motors (3.98%), Reliance Infra (3.97%), ICICI Bank Ltd (3.39%), SBI (3.28%), Reliance Communication Ltd (3.16%), Jaiprakash Associates (2.65%), Ambuja Cement (2.61%), L&T Ltd (2.57%) and HDFC Bank Ltd (2.40%).

The Capital Goods index declined by 328.17 points to close at 13,341.91. Major losers are Kirlosker Br (8.81%), Suzlon Energy (5.62%), Areva (4.04%), Punj Lloyd (3.41%), Laskshmi MA W (2.96%) and ABB Ltd (2.79%).

The Bankex index fell by 264.01 points to close at 8,375.89 as Indian Overseas Bank (4.82%), Axis Bank (4.73%), Yes Bank (4.52%), Punjab National Bank (3.70%), ICICI Bank Ltd (3.39%), SBI (3.28%), and Kotak Bank (3.12%) ended in negative territory.

The Metal closed lower by 237.33 points at 17,152.95. Losers are JSW SL (5.01%), Hindustan Zinc (4.57%), Jindal Stain (3.97%), SH.Precoated (3.82%), Steel Authority (3.75%), and Bhushan Steel (3.07%).

The Oil & Gas index closed lower by 216.26 points at 11,216.54. Losers are Reliance Natural Resources (3.35%), HPCL (3.34%), Reliance Petroleum (3.01%), Essar Oil Ltd (2.83%), BPCL (2.77%) and Cairn India (2.40%).

The Realty index closed lower by 211.54 points at 7,693.54. Losers are Akruti City (4.06%), Puravankara (3.67%), Housing Development (3.55%), Ansal Infra (3.45%), Indiabull Real (3.43%), and Penland Ltd (3.13%).

The Auto index fell by 98.07 points to close at 4,684.83 as Esscorts Ltd (4.65%), TVS Motors (4.63%), Ashok Leyland (4.00%), Tata Motors (3.98%), Bharat Forge (3.74%), and MRF Ltd (2.30%) closed in negative territory

BSE Bulk Deals to Watch - May 22 2008

 Deal Date Scrip Code Scrip Name Client Name Deal Type * Quantity Price **
22/5/2008 523269 ADVANI HOT R AAYUSH KABRA S 362000 100.02
22/5/2008 532975 AISHWARYA TE SANJAY D. MIRANI B 60000 110.10
22/5/2008 532975 AISHWARYA TE SMITA VILAS MARATHE B 99956 108.74
22/5/2008 532975 AISHWARYA TE MANISH V SARVAIYA B 92273 111.23
22/5/2008 532975 AISHWARYA TE SANJAY D. MIRANI S 60000 109.40
22/5/2008 532975 AISHWARYA TE SANJAY KUMAR YADAV S 53793 110.81
22/5/2008 532975 AISHWARYA TE SMITA VILAS MARATHE S 99956 109.80
22/5/2008 532975 AISHWARYA TE MANISH V SARVAIYA S 92273 111.32
22/5/2008 531223 ANJANI SYNTH ARVIND KALYANJI RAMBHIA B 119534 47.80
22/5/2008 531223 ANJANI SYNTH ARVIND KALYANJI RAMBHIA S 119534 46.58
22/5/2008 590081 BRAHMANAND SPJSTOCK B 123492 174.23
22/5/2008 590081 BRAHMANAND SPJSTOCK S 123492 175.78
22/5/2008 590061 BRUSHMAN IND KIRTI STOCKS AND SECURITIES LTD B 65000 120.00
22/5/2008 590061 BRUSHMAN IND ASHOK FINSTOCK LTD B 89100 117.87
22/5/2008 590061 BRUSHMAN IND ASHOK FINSTOCK LTD S 89100 120.00
22/5/2008 531682 CAT TECHNOL BASMATI SECURITIES PVT LTD S 216060 9.03
22/5/2008 530713 CHOKSH INFO V B DESAI FINANCIAL SERVICES LIMITED S 20000 23.44
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF ANGEL INFIN PRIVATE LIMITED B 534554 6.52
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF PRABHUDAS LILLADHER PVT. LTD. B 501661 6.41
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF JMP SECURITIES PVT. LTD. B 1073598 6.52
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF S V ENTERPRISES B 3785369 6.52
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF ASTUTE COMMODITIES AND DERIVATIVES PVT LTD B 575099 6.51
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF ANGEL INFIN PRIVATE LIMITED S 534554 6.63
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF PRABHUDAS LILLADHER PVT. LTD. S 541160 6.42
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF JMP SECURITIES PVT. LTD. S 1323941 6.45
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF S V ENTERPRISES S 2875080 6.43
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF EDELWEISS ESTATES PRIVATE LIMITED S 1000000 6.51
22/5/2008 532271 CYBERMAT INF ASTUTE COMMODITIES AND DERIVATIVES PVT LTD S 590098 6.61
22/5/2008 531137 GEMSTONE INV PREM MOHANLAL PARIKH B 25000 22.77
22/5/2008 531137 GEMSTONE INV HEMANT MADHUSUDAN SHETH S 46140 22.80
22/5/2008 505893 HIND HARDY S NAIMISH J MEHTA B 11084 114.90
22/5/2008 505893 HIND HARDY S NAIMISH J MEHTA S 16871 114.10
22/5/2008 532414 IKF TECHNO ANGEL INFIN PRIVATE LIMITED B 1757883 9.64
22/5/2008 532414 IKF TECHNO JMP SECURITIES PVT. LTD. B 1381240 9.60
22/5/2008 532414 IKF TECHNO ANGEL INFIN PRIVATE LIMITED S 2055466 9.55
22/5/2008 532414 IKF TECHNO JMP SECURITIES PVT. LTD. S 1412617 9.61
22/5/2008 509715 JAYSHRE TEA MANSUKH STOCK BROKERS LTD B 98808 164.73
22/5/2008 509715 JAYSHRE TEA MANSUKH STOCK BROKERS LTD S 98808 165.00
22/5/2008 530985 JPTSECURITII ASTUTE COMMODITIES AND DERIVATIVES PVT LTD B 16180 44.82
22/5/2008 530985 JPTSECURITII ASTUTE COMMODITIES AND DERIVATIVES PVT LTD S 16176 47.14
22/5/2008 532926 JYOTHY LAB FIDELITY INDIAN MUTUAL FUND AC FIDELITY EQUITY FUND B 140400 510.00
22/5/2008 532926 JYOTHY LAB TEMPLETON MUTUAL FUND AC FLEXI CAP FUND S 241371 510.59
22/5/2008 532758 KEW INDUSTR HARSHIL KANTILAL KOTHARI B 140000 27.50
22/5/2008 532758 KEW INDUSTR SPJSTOCK B 106797 27.84
22/5/2008 532758 KEW INDUSTR SPJSTOCK S 116797 27.81
22/5/2008 531602 KOFF BR PICT LAXMI CAP BROKING PVT LTD B 34720 23.95
22/5/2008 531602 KOFF BR PICT LAXMI CAP BROKING PVT LTD S 49894 23.52
22/5/2008 512559 KOHINORFOODS A S CONFIN PVT LTD B 152500 90.00
22/5/2008 512559 KOHINORFOODS ALOSHA VANIJYA PVT LTD S 172764 90.01
22/5/2008 531194 MEWAR INDUS SANDHYA AGARWALA S 19954 12.30
22/5/2008 532692 RADHA MADHAV INDIASTAR MAURITIUS LIMITED S 176098 63.09
22/5/2008 500365 REMI METALS NOSHIRWAN NADIR MODI S 640264 10.00
22/5/2008 504375 SOFTBPO GLOB CHETAN BHUPATRAI MEHTA B 1000 264.60
22/5/2008 513530 STELCO STRIP SPJSTOCK B 158773 45.58
22/5/2008 513530 STELCO STRIP SPJSTOCK S 158773 45.72
22/5/2008 532887 SUJANATOWER DEUTSCHE INTERNATIONAL TRUST CORP MAURITIUS LTD MINIVET LIMITED S 224859 124.46
22/5/2008 522267 VEEJAY LAK E RAJIV ARORA B 29690 91.91
22/5/2008 531249 WELL PACK PA DEEPIKA SHARAD NANSI B 25000 58.55
22/5/2008 531249 WELL PACK PA JIGAR JAYANTILAL SHAH S 35000 60.00

Market takes beating, falls below 17000

Across-the-board selling dragged the market by over 1.95% as indices followed the weak international markets and overlooked the strong quarterly numbers from heavyweights, Cummins, Bajaj Holding, Balaji Telefims and Moser Baer. The market never recovered after resuming 138 points lower at 17105 and the sentiment turned extremely bearish as the trading progressed. Followed by a sharp fall in heavyweights, correction in bank, realty, CG, power and auto stocks dragged the index below the 16900 mark in noon trades to touch the day's low of 16863, down 380 points from yesterday's close of 17243. Finally, the Sensex tumbled by 336 points at 16907 while the Nifty dropped 92 points to close at 5025.

All the sectoral indices took heavy hammering. The BSE Bankex led the slump and dropped 3.06% at 8,376 followed by the BSE Reality index (down 2.68% at 7,693), the BSE CG index (down 2.40% at 13,342), the BSE Power index (down 2.12% at 3,233) and the BSE Auto index (down 2.05% at 4,685).

The market breadth was extremely weak. Of the 2,791 stocks traded on the BSE 1,684 stocks declined, 1,040 stocks advanced and 67 stocks ended unchanged. While only one Sensex stock advanced, 29 declined today. Among the major losers, Tata Motors slumped 3.98% at Rs661.45, Reliance Infra shed 3.97% at Rs1,322.95, ICICI Bank declined 3.39% at Rs880.40, SBI lost 3.28% at Rs1,607, Reliance Communication shed 3.16% at Rs584.65, Jaiprakash Associates fell 2.65% at Rs246.10, Ambuja Cement slipped by 2.61% at Rs104.30, Larsen & Toubro plunged 2.57% at Rs2,916.80 and HDFC Bank tumbled 2.40% at Rs1,379.90. Other blue chips also fell around 1-2% each. Among the gainers only Hindalco Industries added 0.20% at Rs197.65.

Among the bank stocks, Indian Overseas tanked 4.82% at Rs138.25, Axis Bank slumped 4.73% at Rs828.40, Yes Bank dropped 4.52% at Rs161.45, PNB shed 3.70% at Rs537.60 and Kotak Bank was down 3.12% at Rs714.85.

Ispat Industries was the most actively traded counter with volumes of over 4.32 crore shares traded on the BSE followed by IFCI (3.13 crore shares), Nagarjuna Fertilizers (1.11 crore shares), RNRL (1.09 crore shares) and Cybermate (0.99 crore shares).

Value-wise Reliance Capital clocked a turnover of Rs225 crore followed by IFCI (Rs201 crore), Cairn India (Rs189 crore), R Power (Rs180 crore) and Reliance Industries (Rs176 crore).

Market tracks weak global equities; Sensex sheds 336 points

Sharp fall in US stocks overnight and surging crude oil prices weighed on the market sentiment today, triggering a broad based decline in blue chips. Asian markets which opened before Indian markets were weak. European markets which opened after Indian market were in red

Banking, capital goods, realty and auto stocks fell. All the sectoral indices on BSE were in red. The market breadth was weak.

On Wednesday, 21 May 2008, the US Federal Reserve cut its 2008 US economic growth forecast and signaled that mounting concerns over inflation would make further interest rate cuts unlikely, driving the three major US indexes down over 1.5%. Oil prices surged to a record high above $135 per barrel on Thursday, 22 May 2008, stoking fears of global inflation.

The 30-share BSE Sensex lost 336.05 points or 1.95% at 16,907.11. Sensex lost 379.78 points at day's low of 16,863.38 touched in late trade.

The broader based S&P CNX Nifty was down 92.2 points or 1.8% at 5,025.45. Nifty May 2008 futures were at 5024, at a discount of 1.45 points as compared to spot closing of 5025.45.

The BSE clocked a turnover of Rs 5,742 crore, lower than a turnover of Rs 7,126.12 crore on Wednesday, 21 May 2008. NSE's futures & options (F&O) segment turnover was Rs 45,076.17 crore, which was higher than Rs 39,481.17 crore on Wednesday, 21 May 2008.

The market breadth was weak on BSE with 1,040 shares advancing as compared to 1,684 that declined. 67 remained unchanged.

Among the 30-member Sensex pack, 29 declined while 1 advanced.

The BSE Mid-Cap index declined 98.80 points or 1.38% to 7,049.25 and BSE Small-Cap index declined 125.14 points or 1.42% to 8,663.84.

BSE Bankex (down 3.06% at 8,375.89), BSE Realty index (down 2.68% at 7,693.34), BSE Capital Goods index (down 2.4% at 13,341.91), BSE Power (down 2.12% to 3,232.82), BSE Auto index (down 2.05% at 4,684.83) underperformed Sensex.

BSE Oil & Gas index (down 1.89% to 11,216.54), BSE FMCG index (down 1.74% at 2,440.04), BSE Metal index (down 1.36% to 17,152.95), BSE TecK index (down 1.23% to 3,489.01), BSE Consumer Durables index (down 1.04% to 4,632.70), BSE PSU index (down 0.94% to 7,653.82), BSE IT index (down 0.79% to 4,418.23), BSE Health Care index (down 0.41% at 4,228.08), outperformed Sensex.

As per the provisional figures on NSE, the foreign institutional investors (FII)'s sold shares worth Rs 537.35 crore while domestic funds bought shares worth Rs 415.16 crore today, 22 May 2008.

Banking stocks declined. ICICI Bank (down 3.39% to Rs 880.40), HDFC Bank (down 2.4% to Rs 1,379.90) and State Bank of India (down 3.28% to Rs 1,607) edged lower.

Realty stocks fell. Indiabulls Real Estate (down 3.43% to Rs 512.50), Unitech (down 3.1% to Rs 273.85) and DLF (down 2.17% to Rs 620.70) edged lower.

Capital goods stocks declined. Larsen & Toubro (down 2.57% to Rs 2,916.80), Bharat Heavy Electricals (down 1.33% to Rs 1,748.05) and Suzlon Energy (down 5.62% to Rs 291.60) edged lower.

Auto stocks declined. Tata Motors (down 3.98% to Rs 661.45), Maruti Suzuki India (down 1.79% to Rs 800.50), Hero Honda Motors (down 0.03% to Rs 788.50) edged lower.

India's largest tractor maker by sales Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) declined 2.2% to Rs 652.35. It has reportedly signed a term sheet with Kinetic Motors to acquire a majority stake in the company. According to reports, M&M is looking to acquire 76% stake in Kinetic Motors valued at about Rs 120 crore. A deal could fructify in the next two months if the due diligence proceeds smoothly, the reports added.

India's largest private sector firm by market capitalisation and oil refiner Reliance Industries declined 1.89% to Rs 2,617.35.

India's largest state-run oil exploration firm in terms of revenue Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) declined 1.53% to Rs 924.35. It is reportedly planning to sell 30% to 40% each in two blocks in Vietnam to share the risks and drilling costs. ONGC owns 100% in the two deepwater exploration blocks. The buyer has not yet been finalised, the reports added.

India's largest drug maker by sales Ranbaxy Laboratories declined 1.14% to Rs 498.25. It has reportedly struck two deals with group companies. Ranbaxy has sold some land and building for Rs 90 crore to a group company. It has also picked up 24.91% stake in Shimal Laboratories, another promoter family company, for Rs 93.4 crore, the reports added.

Reliance Infrastructure (down 3.97% to Rs 1,322.95), Reliance Communications (down 3.16% to Rs 584.65), Ambuja Cements (down 2.61% to Rs 104.30), Jaiprakash Associates (down 2.65% to Rs 246.10), ITC (down 2.36% to Rs 223.05), HDFC (down 2.29% to Rs 2,626.70) edged lower from the Sensex pack.

India's largest aluminium maker by sales Hindalco Industries rose 0.2% to Rs 197.65.

Ispat Industries clocked the highest volume of 4.32 crore shares on BSE. IFCI (3.13 crore shares), Nagarjuna Fertilisers and Chemicals (1.11 crore shsres), Reliance Natural Resources (1.09 crore shares) and Cybermate Infotek (99.73 lakh shares) were the other volume toppers in that order.

Reliance Capital clocked the highest turnover of Rs 225.63 crore on BSE. IFCI (Rs 201.77 crore), Cairn India (Rs 189.47 crore), Reliance Power (Rs 180.57 crore) and Reliance Industries (Rs 176 crore) were the other turnover toppers in that order.

In Asia, key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, China, South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan were down by between 0.08% to 1.89%. However Japan's Nikkei was up 0.37%.

European markets were weak. Key benchmark indices in Frnace andd Germany and UK were down between 0.04% to 0.49%.

Earnings downgrade amid rising input and interest costs, high inflation and drying up of global liquidity due to credit crisis remain major concern for the Indian stock market. Inflation based on the wholesale price index rose 7.83% in 12 months to 3 May 2008, higher than previous week's annual rise of 7.61%, government data released on 16 May 2008, showed. It was the highest since an annual reading of 7.93% on 6 November 2004.

Further, a steep increase in upward revision in inflation rate for the week ended 8 March 2008, to 7.78% from the provisional 5.92%, came as a rude shock to marketmen. According to retail brokerage Sharekhan, the steep upward revision in inflation rate is a cause for concern, as prices of many commodities have not been updated for varied periods. Moreover, a sharp fall in the rupee against the dollar in the past few days has heightened concerns about inflation. This is because the fall in rupee will raise cost of imports which in turn will result in further rise in inflation.

In a bid to rein in inflation, the Reserve Bank of India, on Tuesday, 29 April 2008, raised cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 25 basis points to 8.25%, to suck out excess liquidity in the banking system, in its annual monetary policy review.

With parliamentary elections scheduled next year (May 2009), the government may leave no stone unturned in its attempt to tame inflation. This is bad news for commodity scrips such as cement and steel. Cement maker ACC said earlier this months that its margins will be hurt by a decision to hold its prices for 2 to 3 months that was taken after the government asked cement firms to help contain price pressures. The government recently imposed export tax on basmati rice and some steel products, and cut import duties on key inputs like ferro alloys and metallurgical coke. The government had earlier banned export of cement and non-basmati rice. On 7 May 2008, the government ordered suspension in futures trading in channa, refined soyoil, potato and rubber for four months.

Meanwhile, as per a recent study by CLSA, large amount of foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) issued by Indian companies are coming up for redemption in the next 18-24 months. After recent stock market volatility many FCCBs are at risk of not converting i.e. if the stock market remains subdued, it will stop the bond holders from opting for an equity conversion as it will be easier for them to buy the stock from the open market instead of paying the agreed premium.

When the FCCBs come for redemption, some of these companies may have to take on more debt to redeem the FCCB, thereby raising interest outgo. In the event FCCBs don't get converted, companies have the option to lower the conversion price in line with the market, leading to higher equity dilution. If companies decide to issue fresh FCCBs to finance redemption of FCCBs, it will be at lower premium than earlier.

With the rupee tumbling against the dollar in the last few days, the government may ease restrictions on overseas corporate borrowing when it, together with the RBI, reviews the external commercial borrowing (ECB) policy later this month, reports suggest. Last year, the government had imposed restrictions on ECBs in a bid to check in surge in rupee against the dollar. There are many Indian corporates who will eagerly seek cheap overseas funds if the RBI re-opens the ECB tap, analysts reckon.

The structural growth drivers of the Indian economy remain intact – India's economy is expected to witness a decent-to-strong growth for a long period of time due to favourable demographics. Acceleration in infrastructure creation will be another driver of strong growth in India's economy. A CLSA report says India's infrastructure development is set to accelerate, backed by greater private sector participation and improved finances of government and public sector enterprises. Rating agency Crisil in its outlook for Indian economy for the year through March 2009 has stated that the overall growth scenario is expected to remain strong with investment as the main driver.

Given the continued inflow to unit linked insurance plans (Ulips) and equity linked savings schemes (ELSS) of mutual funds, stock-specific buying will continue depending on fundamentals of individual stocks. Insurance firms are now a major player in the Indian stock market given the huge mop up in Ulips in recent years. It was buying support from domestic funds which had aided the recent recovery on the bourses.

Meanwhile, as per recent reports, ELSS which offer tax benefit are catching the fancy of small savers. ELSS funds saw their collective assets jump more than nine times to about Rs 16000 crore in three years ending March 2008. In 2005 the investment limit eligible for income tax breaks was raised ten times to Rs 1,00,000 rupees for ELSS funds. Systematic investment plan (SIP) are said to be driving inflows into ELSS funds.

Market to drift lower on weak global equities, record high oil prices

The market is expected to drift lower tracking weakness in global equities. On Wednesday, the US Federal Reserve cut its 2008 US economic growth forecast and signaled that mounting concerns over inflation would make further interest rate cuts unlikely, driving the three major US indexes down over 1.5%. Oil prices surged to a record high above $135 per barrel on Thursday, 22 May 2008, stoking fears of global inflation.

In Asia, key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan were down by between 0.72% to 2.26%.

Earnings downgrade amid rising input and interest costs, high inflation and drying up of global liquidity due to credit crisis remain major concern for the Indian stock market. Inflation based on the wholesale price index rose 7.83% in 12 months to 3 May 2008, higher than previous week's annual rise of 7.61%, government data released on 16 May 2008, showed. It was the highest since an annual reading of 7.93% on 6 November 2004.

Further, a steep increase in upward revision in inflation rate for the week ended 8 March 2008, to 7.78% from the provisional 5.92%, came as a rude shock to marketmen. According to retail brokerage Sharekhan, the steep upward revision in inflation rate is a cause for concern, as prices of many commodities have not been updated for varied periods. Moreover, a sharp fall in the rupee against the dollar in the past few days has heightened concerns about inflation. This is because the fall in rupee will raise cost of imports which in turn will result in further rise in inflation.

In a bid to rein in inflation, the Reserve Bank of India, on Tuesday, 29 April 2008, raised cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 25 basis points to 8.25%, to suck out excess liquidity in the banking system, in its annual monetary policy review.

With parliamentary elections scheduled next year (May 2009), the government may leave no stone unturned in its attempt to tame inflation. This is bad news for commodity scrips such as cement and steel. Cement maker ACC said earlier this months that its margins will be hurt by a decision to hold its prices for 2 to 3 months that was taken after the government asked cement firms to help contain price pressures.

The government recently imposed export tax on basmati rice and some steel products, and cut import duties on key inputs like ferro alloys and metallurgical coke. The government had earlier banned export of cement and non-basmati rice. On 7 May 2008, the government ordered suspension in futures trading in channa, refined soyoil, potato and rubber for four months.

Meanwhile, as per a recent study by CLSA, large amount of foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) issued by Indian companies are coming up for redemption in the next 18-24 months. After recent stock market volatility many FCCBs are at risk of not converting i.e. if the stock market remains subdued, it will stop the bond holders from opting for an equity conversion as it will be easier for them to buy the stock from the open market instead of paying the agreed premium.

When the FCCBs come for redemption, some of these companies may have to take on more debt to redeem the FCCB, thereby raising interest outgo. In the event FCCBs don't get converted, companies have the option to lower the conversion price in line with the market, leading to higher equity dilution. If companies decide to issue fresh FCCBs to finance redemption of FCCBs, it will be at lower premium than earlier.

The structural growth drivers of the Indian economy remain intact – India's economy is expected to witness a decent-to-strong growth for a long period of time due to favourable demographics. Acceleration in infrastructure creation will be another driver of strong growth in India's economy. A CLSA report says India's infrastructure development is set to accelerate, backed by greater private sector participation and improved finances of government and public sector enterprises. Rating agency Crisil in its outlook for Indian economy for the year through March 2009 has stated that the overall growth scenario is expected to remain strong with investment as the main driver.

Given the continued inflow to unit linked insurance plans (Ulips) and equity linked savings schemes (ELSS) of mutual funds, stock-specific buying will continue depending on fundamentals of individual stocks. Insurance firms are now a major player in the Indian stock market given the huge mop up in Ulips in recent years. It was buying support from domestic funds which had aided the recent recovery on the bourses.

Meanwhile, as per recent reports, ELSS which offer tax benefit are catching the fancy of small savers. ELSS funds saw their collective assets jump more than nine times to about Rs 16000 crore in three years ending March 2008. In 2005 the investment limit eligible for income tax breaks was raised ten times to Rs 1,00,000 rupees for ELSS funds. Systematic investment plan (SIP) are said to be driving inflows into ELSS funds

Crude plays sp-oil sport!

You can't let one bad moment spoil a bunch of good ones.

For the bulls, bad moments seem to carry on longer. While they did manage to recoup their losses on Wednesday, the bulls are suddenly finding life difficult. Crude oil is on fire, the rupee keeps depreciating and inflation shows no sign of cooling. Governments and central banks the world over are grappling with a slew of headwinds. So, while on one hand economic growth is slowing, inflation remains at highly elevated level. Prices of several other commodities - both industrial and foods - have also shot through the roof.

What's worse, most governments and central banks are running out of options to tackle the emerging challenges. In India, we have a peculiar situation where the Government is bent on appeasing the masses due to political compulsions. SBI's withdrawal of circular suspending loans on farm equipment like tractors is a classic case in point. The oil marketing companies, which are desperately trying to cut losses by either suspending new LPG connections or rationing of fuels may well face a similar fate.

Against this backdrop, we see renewed risks for the market. The upside looks capped, and chances of a fresh round of selling have increased. Today, we expect a slight gap-down opening due to weakness across global markets. It will take some doing for the bulls to repeat Wednesday's stellar performance when they managed to bounce back after a lower opening.

FIIs were net sellers of Rs7.77bn (provisional) in the cash segment on Wednesday while local institutions were net buyers of Rs4.53bn. In the F&O segment, foreign funds were net sellers of Rs8bn. On Tuesday, foreign funds were net sellers of Rs3.2bn in the cash segment. Mutual Funds offloaded stocks worth Rs4.9bn.

Key Results Today: Bajaj Holdings & Investment, Balaji Tele, Core Projects, Cummins India, Dalmia Cement, Dishman Pharma, Havell's India and Moser Baer.

Asian stocks fell for a third day today, extending a global slump, after oil rose to a record and the Federal Reserve signaled it is done cutting interest rates.

Nintendo and Canon led consumer-electronics makers lower. Qantas Airways and Korean Air Lines retreated among airlines after crude climbed above $135 for the first time, boosting costs.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 1% to 150.49 as of 11:34 a.m. in Tokyo, with almost four stocks dropping for each that climbed. All 10 industry groups declined. All of Asia's benchmark indexes retreated, with Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average declining 1.2% to 13,762.27.

US stocks sank on Wednesday as crude oil surged further on a surprising weakness in government's weekly fuel supply report. Sentiment also got hit after the minutes from the Federal Reserve's last meeting showed policy makers were reluctant to cut rates.

The Fed also forecast worse economic conditions ahead, but could still find it tough to cut rates any further. The Fed also lowered its economic growth forecast for the year. At the same time, it raised its projections for inflation and unemployment.

Citigroup, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase sent financial shares to their lowest since April 15. Target led retailers to their worst decline in a month and an index of airlines slid to an all-time low as crude climbed above US$133 a barrel.

Shares of Moody's Corp. slumped the most since 1999 after the credit ratings company said it is investigating whether it mistakenly assigned AAA ratings to debt securities that later fell in value.

The S&P 500 slumped 22.69 points, or 1.6%, to 1,390.71. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 227.49 points, or 1.8%, to 12,601.19. The Nasdaq Composite Index dived 43.99 points, or 1.8%, to 2,448.27.

Market breadth was negative. Four stocks retreated for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange.

US light crude oil for July delivery set a closing record of $133.17 in New York Mercantile Exchange trading, up more than $4 a barrel - and then proceeded to march to another record intraday high of $134.10 in electronic trading after the settlement.

Oil prices spiked after the government's weekly inventories report showed a surprise drop in crude and gasoline supplies and a weaker-than-expected buildup in distillates, used in heating oil. Oil has been climbing lately amid supply concerns and weakness in the dollar.

The US national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas rose to a record US$3.807 from the previous day's high of US$3.80, according to AAA.

Stocks in Europe fell on record crude prices, resulting in sharp losses for automakers and airlines. The pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 index fell 0.9% to 323.16 as crude-oil prices run up as high as $132.08 a barrel. The UK's FTSE 100 edged up 0.1% to 6,198.10, while the German DAX 30 fell 1.1% to 7,040.83 and the French CAC-40 dropped 0.5% to 5,027.55.

In the emerging markets, the Bovespa in Brazil slid 1.7% to 72,294 while the IPC index in Mexico was down 1.3% at 31,126. The RTS index in Russia gained 0.6% to 2467 while the ISE National 30 index in Turkey fell 0.75% to 50,360.

Bulls to dance to global cues

It was a flat finish to a day that started off with negative bias. Indian bourses had a weak start mirroring overnight losses in the US markets. Going forward even the Asian markets were trading weak. However, bulls managed to stage come back in the afternoon trades on back of a swift recovery seen in the Asian markets coupled with a positive start in equity markets across Europe.

Among the 30-scrips of Sensex, Reliance Industries, Tata Steel, ITC and BHEL were among the major gainers. On the other hand, HDFC, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Infosys were among the major laggards.

Among the BSE Sectoral indices, BSE Oil & Gas index led from the front gaining 2.3%. Other's like BSE Metal index (up 1.2%), BSE PSU index (up 1%) and BSE Capital Goods index (up 0.8%). On the other hand, BSE Bankex index (down 1.5%) and Pharma index (down 0.6%).

Finally, the BSE benchmark Sensex ended 12 points higher to close at 17,243 and the Nifty index gained 12 points to close at 5,117.

Overall about 1,710 stocks advanced; 1,007 stocks declined while 77 stocks remained unchanged. Among the 50-Nifty 27 stocks ended in green and 23 stocks ended in red.

HDIL ended down by 3.6% to Rs811. The company posted a net profit of Rs7082.50mn for the quarter ended March 31, 2008. Total Revenue is Rs9894.90mn for the quarter ended March 31, 2008.

The Company has posted a net profit of Rs14105.00mn for the year ended March 31, 2008 as compared to Rs5418.20mn for the year ended March 31, 2007. Total Revenue has increased from Rs12165.10mn for the year ended March 31, 2007 to Rs24323.20mn for the year ended March 31, 2008. The board of directors of the company also announced that it approved 2 bonus shares for every 7 shares held. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs865 and a low of Rs805 and recorded volumes of over 47,00,000 shares on BSE.

GMR Infrastructure ended flat at Rs151. The company announced that it posted a net profit of Rs373.60mn for the quarter ended March 31, 2008 as compared to Rs123.70mn for the quarter ended March 31, 2007. Total Income has increased from Rs227.50mn for the quarter ended March 31, 2007 to Rs644.40mn for the quarter ended March 31, 2008.

The company posted a net profit after tax of Rs626.90mn for the year ended March 31, 2008 as compared to Rs28.80mn for the year ended March 31, 2007. Total Income has increased from Rs339.00mn for the year ended March 31, 2007 to Rs1122.00mn for the year ended March 31, 2008. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs152 and a low of Rs145 and recorded volumes of over 31,00,000 shares on BSE.

Kesoram Industries gained by a percent to Rs361 as the company is reportedly planning to spend Rs25bn for expanding its tyre and cement capacity by 2009.

According to report, the company is setting up three new tyre units in the northern state of Uttaranchal to take tyre-making capacity to 734 metric tons per day from 252 metric tons. The company will add another 1.65mn tons to its cement making capacity, taking it to 6.2mn tons per annum by 2008 from 4.5mn tons now. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs364 and a low of Rs352 and recorded volumes of over 12,000 shares on BSE.

Firstsource rallied by over 7% to Rs43 after the company said that it won 3-year outsourcing contract from Bharti Airtel. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs45 and a low of Rs40 and recorded volumes of over 12,00,000 shares on BSE.

SBI gained by half a percent to Rs1661 after the bank said that they would resume tractor loans with immediate effect. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs1677 and a low of Rs1631 and recorded volumes of over 2,00,000 shares on BSE.

Cairn India hit an intra-day high of Rs342, the scrip witnessed profit booking and ended flat at Rs327. Reports stated that the company would explore oil and gas in Rajasthan Hadauti region. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs342 and a low of Rs324 and recorded volumes of over 96,00,000 shares on BSE.

Educomp Solutions gained by 1.7% to Rs4103 after the company on Tuesday announced that it acquired 51% stake in US based Learning.com for US$24.5mn. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs4125 and a low of Rs3999 and recorded volumes of over 32,000 shares on BSE.

IOC gained by 0.5% to Rs408 following reports that the company plans to enter retail marketing business in Turkey along with setting up a 15 mtpa greenfield refinery and a petrochemicals complex. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs413 and a low of Rs399 and has recorded volumes of over 56,000 shares on BSE.

Corporate News

SBI to resume tractor and farm equipment loans, reversing its decision to stop lending for farm equipment. (BL)

RIL to pick up 50% stake and will invest Rs7bn in Rewas port connectivity project of Indian Railways. (ET)

ONGC planning to sell 30-40% stake in the two blocks won in Vietnam in 2006. (BS)

ONGC infuses Rs50bn in western offshore fields. (FE)

Bharti Airtel has signed a US$35mn, three-year outsourcing agreement with Firstsource Solutions. (ET)

M&M signs non-binding pact with Kinetic Motors in its bid to acquire 76% in the company, valued at Rs1.2bn. (ET)

BSNL awards US$90mn contract to Motorola. (BL)

IOC, BPCL and HPCL have stopped issuing new LPG connections to household consumers, defying government orders. (ET)

PFC to call for proposals for the 4,000MW Tilaiya UMPP at Orissa. (BL)

Infosys hires consultant to chalk out revamp plan. (BL)

Employees of Infosys Technologies to pass certification programs to be conducted every March, to get promoted. (BS)

Lanco Infra gets US$150mn IFC credit for power projects. (BL)

Ranbaxy begins operations in Yemen. (BL)

Dabur Pharma gets FDA nod for prostrate cancer drug. (BL)

Satyam Computers and GE Healthcare to support customers deploying healthcare IT solutions based on GE Centricity enterprise software.

GMR Infrastructure to diversify into corporate jet business and would invest Rs8bn for the same. (BL)

IOC seeks nod to raise borrowing limit to Rs800bn. (BL)

IFCI has acquired 46.7% shareholding of Mohan Exports Group in Foremost Factors Ltd in a transaction valued at about Rs116mn. (BL)

NMDC and three other Indian firms in talks with Australia's Rio Tinto Group to buy a new technology to smelt low grade iron ores and even wastes. (BL)

Standard Chartered Bank to consider listing on the Indian Stock Exchanges. (ET)

Ranbaxy Laboratories sold off its land and building to its group companies at Rs900mn and bought 24.9% stake at Rs934mn in its other group company Shimal Labs. (ET)

ArcelorMittal in talks to take over Macarthur Coal of Australia. (ET)

Reliance Retail in talks with four foreign food suppliers including US based Dole and Chiquita, Sadia of Brazil and Doux of France for alliances. (ET)

The GMR group plans to increase its equity stake in South Africa's Homeland Energy, a company that owns coal mines, from 10% to 50%. (ET)

Consumer goods companies like LG Electronics, Godrej Appliances etc. to raise prices of products like televisions and refrigerators by 5%.to offset increase in raw material cost. (BS)

West Asian telecom companies Etisalat and Qatar Telecom have approached Videocon Industries for tie-ups in India. (BS)

Essar Steel Holdings may raise its bid after Russian steel maker OAO Severstal matched its offer of US$17 a share for acquiring US based Esmark. (BS)

UTI AMC plans to revive its US$500mn IPO which it shelved earlier this year when markets plunged. (BS)

BEML Midwest acquired its first mine in Mozambique and is close to acquiring another in Indonesia.

Economic News

Number of passengers passing through Indian airports grew at ~11% in the first quarter of the calendar year against ~28% growth recorded in the first three months of 2007.

State Coal Ministry announced no intentions of increasing prices this year. (ET)

Indian Post has tied up with US-based postal solutions provider Pittney Bowes to offer enhanced mailing services. (ET)

Government is considering re-allocating wheat in place of rice for the Targeted Public Distribution System (TDPS), as part of its measures to control inflation and augment the availability of essential commodities. (BS)

Power Ministry says that it will be able to achieve 80,000MW of capacity addition in the 11th plan. (FE)