Sensex sheds 415 points on global growth worries; Ranbaxy tanks

Intense selling in index pivotals ever since the opening bell led a sell-off on the bourses today. The BSE 30-share Sensex fell 415.27 points. Recovery from lower level in afternoon trade proved short-lived. Trading was choppy. Weak global markets weighed on the domestic bourses.

The market breadth was weak. Shares from realty and IT pack were the worst hit in today's slide. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries shed over 3%. Ranbaxy Laboratories tumbled close to 9%. However, shares of state-run oil marketing companies and aviation firms bucked the weak market trend.

Annual inflation rose 12.34% in the year through 23 August 2008, lower than previous week’s 12.40% rise, data released by the government after trading hours on Thursday, 4 September 2008 showed. Food prices for staples like lentils and vegetables eased while fuel prices remained flat, the data showed. Inflation, however, remains far above central bank’s target level of 7% towards the year ending March 2009.

The opposition BJP on Thursday, 4 September 2008 accused Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of misleading Parliament and the country on the nuclear deal issue and demanded the resignation of the Manmohan Singh government. Senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha said in view of the gross breach of privilege of both the Houses of Parliament, an immediate session of Parliament should be convened within the shortest possible time to enable BJP to move a privilege motion against the Prime Minister if the UPA did not quit.

The BJP made the demands in the wake of the disclosure of correspondence between the Bush administration and US Congress that the Indo-US nuclear pact would be off if India conducted a nuclear test.

The Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is reportedly inching towards forging a consensus on clearing a waiver to India for nuclear commerce, a decision that can take the Indo-US nuclear deal forward. The United States said on Thursday, 4 September 2008, 45 nations were making headway towards agreement on lifting a ban on nuclear trade with India after Washington reworked a draft for the move to ease proliferation fears. The two-day meeting of NSG ends today, 5 September 2008.

The BSE 30-share Sensex fell fell 415.27 points or 2.79% to 14,483.83. It opened 330.09 points lower at 14,569.01. At the day’s low of 14,438.59 hit in afternoon trade, the Sensex lost 460.51 points. At the day’s high of 14,601.39 hit in early afternoon trade, the Sensex fell 297.71 points.

The S&P CNX Nifty declined 95.45 points or 2.15%, to settle at 4352.30. Nifty September 2008 futures were at 4368, a premium of 15.70 over spot closing.

The BSE Sensex is down 5803.16 points or 28.60% in the calendar year 2008 so far from its close of 20,286.99 on 31 December 2007. It is 6722.94 points or 31.70% away from its all-time high of 21,206.77 struck on 10 January 2008.

The market breadth was weak on BSE with 1613 shares declining as compared to 1017 that advanced. 86 remained unchanged.

The BSE Mid-Cap index declined 1.29% to 5,753.72 and the BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.99% to 6,905.22. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 4790 crore as compared to Rs 5,485.53 crore yesterday, 4 September 2008. Turnover in NSE’s futures & options segment rose to Rs 46868.19 crore from Rs 46290.5 crore yesterday, 4 September 2008.

Among the 30-member Sensex pack, 27 declined while the rest gained.

India’s top drug maker by sales, Ranbaxy Laboratories tumbled 9.20% to Rs 448.15 on 15.29 lakh shares. It was the top loser from Sensex pack. The Japanese drug maker Daiichi Sankyo’s open offer to acquire an additional 20% stake at Rs 737 a share in the company ended yesterday, 4 September 2008.

India’s largest private sector firm by market capitalization and oil refiner Reliance Industries (RIL) slumped 3.24% to Rs 2083 on 13.47 lakh shares. The stock moved in a range of Rs 2067.05 and Rs 2120 during the day.

Auto stocks rebounded from day’s low. India’s top truck maker by sales, Tata Motors lost 1.84% to Rs 420.90, off day’s low of Rs 417. A crucial meeting will be held in Kolkata today, 5 September 2008, between representatives of the West Bengal government and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee to end the standoff over land acquisition for the company’s small car project at Singur.

Tata Motors Chairman Ratan Tata said on Thursday, the company will do everything it can to roll out its super-cheap Nano car as close to the planned October 2008 launch timeline as possible.

India's top small car maker by sales, Maruti Suzuki India was down 0.28% to Rs 682, off day’s low of Rs 654.20. Mahindra & Mahindra, the country's largest tractor manufacturer by sales shed 0.39% to Rs 584.05, off day’s low of Rs 570. The BSE Auto index skid by 1.43% to 3,983.05.

Frontline IT stocks were under selling pressure. Infosys (down 4.42% to Rs 1710.50), Wipro (down 4.37% to Rs 428.50), TCS (down 0.55% to Rs 839.50), and Satyam Computer Services (down 3.55% to Rs 417.50), edged lower. The BSE IT index lost 3.52% to 3,941.74

Telecom heavyweights declined. India’s largest listed cellular services provider by sales Bharti Airtel lost 3.10% to Rs 801. Reliance Communications, the country’s second largest listed cellular services provider by sales fell 1.20% to Rs 392.70

Real estate stocks declined. DLF (down 5.60% to Rs 493.50), Unitech (down 4.93% to Rs 157), Indiabulls Real Estate (down 3.06% to Rs 280.50), Parsvnath Developers (down 0.77% to Rs 122.50), and Akruti City (down 6.77% to Rs 897), slipped from the realty pack. The BSE Realty index slumped 4.17% to 4,979.26, and was the top loser among the sectoral indices on BSE.

Steel stocks declined on reports they have slashed prices by up to Rs 2,000 per tonne in the spot market with effect from 1 September 2008, in the wake of a slump in steel prices globally. Tata Steel (down 3.74% to Rs 560.55), JSW Steel (down 3.55% to Rs 705), Ispat Industries (down 1.02% to Rs 24.35), and Jindal Steel & Power (down 5.06% to Rs 1800.15), declined.

India’s top power equipment maker in terms of sales, Bharat Heavy Electricals declined 2.28% to Rs 1725 on reports the company would sign a pact on Saturday, 6 September 2008, with Heavy Engineering Corporation, Ranchi to set up a joint venture foundry forge company

Banking shares declined on fresh selling despite softening of inflation for a second week in a row. ICICI Bank (down 4.21% to Rs 688), State Bank of India (down 0.99% to Rs 1520), and HDFC Bank (down 4.43% to Rs 1246.20), slipped. The Bankex lost 3.52% at 7,172.85.

India’s second largest private sector power generation company by sales Tata Power Company was down 1.39% to Rs 1072.90. The company said on Thursday, 4 September 2008, it has acquired 11.4% stake in Australia’s Geodynamics for Rs 165 crore.

Jaiprakash Associates (down 5.46% to Rs 167.10), HDFC (down 5.98% to Rs 2276.05), edged lower from the Sensex pack.

India’s largest FMCG company by sales, Hindustan Unilever gained 1.62% to Rs 244.75 on 2.95 lakh shares. It was the top gainer from the Sensex pack. The stock recovered from the day’s low of Rs 236.

India’s largest oil exploration company by market capitalisation ONGC recovered from day’s low of Rs 1040.20. It closed with gain of 0.29% to Rs 1072. As per reports, the company's wholly owned overseas unit ONGC Videsh is in talks to acquire Canada's Tanganyika Oil Co for about $1.2-1.5 billion. Tanganyika is listed on the Stockholm bourse and has production and exploration assets in Egypt and Syria.

Reliance Industries topped the turnover chart on BSE with a turnover of Rs 281 crore followed by Reliance Capital (Rs 260.80 crore), Austral Coke & Projects (Rs 254.80 crore), State Bank of India (Rs 157 crore) and Reliance Infrastructure (Rs 133.35 crore), in that order.

Austral Coke & Projects topped volumes on BSE notching volumes of 1.21 crore shares followed by Reliance Natural Resources (96.75 lakh shares), IFCI (50.60 lakh shares), Chambal Fertilisers (45.80 lakh shares) and Reliance Petroleum (43.90 lakh shares), in that order.

Shares of PSU OMCs advanced on fresh buying. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (up 5.17% to Rs 238.05), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (up 8.76% to Rs 358.25), and Indian Oil Corporation (up 1.80% to Rs 444.40), surged

Airline shares jumped. Deccan Aviation (up 3.30% to Rs 89.30), Jet Airways (up 2.89% to Rs 544.40), edged higher

Orbit Corporation rose 0.88% to Rs 307.80 after the Supreme Court on Thursday cleared a Maharashtra development control rule allowing realtors to enjoy floor space index of 3-7 times, allowing them to build more vertically.

Alembic spurted 6.08% to Rs 44.50 after 20.50 lakh shares, or 1.4% of the company's equity changed hands in a block deal on the NSE at Rs 42 each.

Aban Offshore surged 3.19% to Rs 2,285.70. On 1 September 2008, the company’s step-down overseas unit Venture Drilling AS won 18-month contract from Maersk Oil Angola at an operating day rate of 495,000 million.

US crude was down $1.51 to $106.38 a barrel, at the lowest level since 4 April 2008, on flagging US demand and the stronger dollar.

European markets, which opened after Indian markets, were subdued. Key benchmark indices in UK, Germany and France were down by between 1.06% and 1.34%.

Fears about economic growth and a 3% slump in US stocks on Thursday, 4 September 2008, sent Asian shares sprawling today, 5 September 2008. Key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan were down by between 1.55% to 3.29%.

Wall Street suffered its steepest decline in more than two months on Thursday, 4 September 2008, after weekly government data showed an unexpected jump in the number of filings for jobless benefits, souring the mood before Friday's (5 September 2008)’s jobs report for August 2008, which is expected to show the eighth consecutive decline, with 75,000 jobs lost.