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Monday, December 22, 2008

Eveninger - Dec 22 2008


Eveninger - Dec 22 2008

BSE Bulk Deals to Watch - Dec 22 2008


Deal Date Scrip Code Company Client Name Deal Type * Quantity Price **
22/12/2008 500009 AMBAL SARA E THE METHONI TEA CO LTD B 600000 9.93
22/12/2008 500009 AMBAL SARA E INDI STOCK P LTD S 635062 9.83
22/12/2008 523207 CAMLIN LIMIT VINOD KUMAR SARAOGI B 450000 10.80
22/12/2008 523207 CAMLIN LIMIT MERIDIAN INVESTMENTS S 470100 10.80
22/12/2008 526285 DIVYAJYO IND SANDEEP RATHI S 135700 7.35
22/12/2008 532984 ENSO SECUT PUNNI SANGHAVI B 75000 20.84
22/12/2008 532984 ENSO SECUT CORPORATE STRATEGIES PVT LTD S 67241 20.85
22/12/2008 511728 KZLEASING VIRAL MUKUNDRAI PATEL B 20715 43.58
22/12/2008 511728 KZLEASING VIRAL MUKUNDRAI PATEL S 20715 43.92
22/12/2008 590077 RANKLIN SOLU VIPUL VIRENDRAKUMAR. PATEL B 30000 55.40
22/12/2008 590077 RANKLIN SOLU VIPUL VIRENDRAKUMAR. PATEL S 25730 55.57
22/12/2008 531898 SANGUINE MD SANGHAVI FINCAP LTD B 95000 5.95
22/12/2008 531898 SANGUINE MD VISHU ENTERPRISE S 135000 5.91

NSE Bulk Deals to Watch - Dec 22 2008


Date,Symbol,Security Name,Client Name,Buy/Sell,Quantity Traded,Trade Price / Wght. Avg. Price,Remarks
22-DEC-2008,APOLLOSIND,Apollo Sindhoori Capital,PADMAJA REDDY,BUY,300001,50.20,-
22-DEC-2008,HCIL,HIMADRI CHEMICALS AND IND,HIMADRI DYES & INTERMEDIATES LTD,BUY,350000,127.50,-
22-DEC-2008,HDIL,Housing Development and I,GENUINE STOCK BROKERS PVT LTD,BUY,2203836,162.56,-
22-DEC-2008,NOIDATOLL,Noida Toll Bridge Company,HDFC INFRASTRUCTURE FUND,BUY,950000,22.83,-
22-DEC-2008,PSTL,Pyramid Saimira Theatre L,MULTIPLIER S AND S ADV PVT LTD,BUY,621567,82.91,-
22-DEC-2008,PSTL,Pyramid Saimira Theatre L,YUVAK SHARE TRADING PVT LTD,BUY,194772,77.09,-
22-DEC-2008,TULSI,Tulsi Extrusions Limited,SANDEEP DHANKHER,BUY,76638,17.05,-
22-DEC-2008,APOLLOSIND,Apollo Sindhoori Capital,BALASUBRAMANIAN P S,SELL,295308,50.20,-
22-DEC-2008,HCIL,HIMADRI CHEMICALS AND IND,SHYAM SUNDAR CHOUDHARY,SELL,350000,127.50,-
22-DEC-2008,HDIL,Housing Development and I,GENUINE STOCK BROKERS PVT LTD,SELL,2203836,162.73,-
22-DEC-2008,HDIL,Housing Development and I,TCI CYPRUS HOLDING LIMITED,SELL,2450000,169.21,-
22-DEC-2008,PSTL,Pyramid Saimira Theatre L,MULTIPLIER S AND S ADV PVT LTD,SELL,621562,82.56,-
22-DEC-2008,PSTL,Pyramid Saimira Theatre L,YUVAK SHARE TRADING PVT LTD,SELL,194779,77.26,-

Post Session Commentary - Dec 22 2008


The domestic market slithered during final hours to close in negative territory due to sustained selling on key stocks led by weak European markets. Investors’ were also cautious ahead of the expiry of the near month derivatives contracts. The December 2008 derivatives contracts will expire on Wednesday, 24 December 2008, as the markets are closed on Thursday, 25 December 2008, for Christmas. Market was volatile since initial bell though recovered for a while on expectation of interest rate cuts by the RBI along with the expectation of second stimulus package by the government Also, State Bank of India on Dec 21 reduced its prime lending rate by 0.75% and deposit rates by 0.25-1% from January 1. State Bank''s PLR now stands at 12.25 per cent.

The Indian market opened marginally higher but soon turned volatile. Further stocks gathered some momentum on hopes of rate cut and stimulus package. Besides, the US auto bailout package that was announced by the government for the nation''s biggest carmakers and computer-memory chip manufacturers also added to the sentiments. However, market was not able to hold the impetus and slipped further on account of heavy selling pressure seen in frontliners. BSE Sensex ended below 10,000 mark and NSE Nifty below 3,050 level. From the sectoral front, Investors off-loaded positions across most of the sectors and Oil & Gas, Bank, Capital Goods, Pharma and Power stocks contributed to the weakness. Midcap and Small cap stocks also slipped into red. However, Consumer Durables, FMGC, PSU and Reality stocks witnessed majority of the buying from these baskets.

Among the Sensex pack 23 stocks ended in red territory and 7 in green. The market breadth was almost flat as 1276 stocks closed in green while 1258 stocks closed in red and 82 stocks remained unchanged in BSE.

The BSE Sensex closed lower by 171.56 points at 9,928.35 and NSE Nifty ended down by 38.20 points at 3,039.30. The BSE Mid Caps and Small Caps ended with losses of 4.20 points and 9.07 points at 3,259.79 and 3,734.95 respectively. The BSE Sensex touched intraday high of 10,173.34 and intraday low of 9,894.01.

Losers from the BSE Sensex pack are ICICI Bank (5.49%), Reliance (4.78%), M&M Ltd (4.55%), Maruti Suzuki (3.79%), HDFC Bank (3.01%), (1.72%), Reliance Infra (2.85%), BHEL (2.44%), JP Associates (2.02%), HDFC (1.78%) and ACC Ltd (1.69%).

Gainers from the BSE Sensex pack are Tata Motors (4.91%), DLF Ltd (2.73%), Ranbaxy Lab (2.05%), ITC Ltd (0.87%), Tata Power (0.52%), Grasim Indus (0.35%) and ONGC Ltd (0.13 %).

The BSE Oil & Gas index ended lower by (3.02%) or 194.61 points at 6,249.20. Major losers are BPCL (4.87%), Reliance (4.78%), Cairn Ind (4.71%), IOC Ltd (3.87%), Aban Offshore (3.67%) and Reliance Natural Resources (2.61%).

The BSE Bank index ended down by (2.48%) or 139.44 points at 5,491.78. Major losers are ICICI Bank (5.49%), Kotak Bank (4.82%), HDFC Bank (3.01%), Union Bank (2.17%), IDBI Bank (1.79%) and Axis (1.62%).

The BSE Metal index lost (1.52%) or 82.37 points to close at 5,352.48 as Jai Corp Ltd (6.71%), Welspan Gujarat SR (4.49%), Jindal Steel (4.29%), Steel Authority (3.40%), NMDC Ltd (2.60%) and Guajrat NRE C (2.01%) ended in red.

The BSE Auto index dropped by (1.36%) or 34.93 points to close at 2,526.70. Losers are Ashok Leyland (6.38%), M&M Ltd (4.55%), Maruti Suzuki (3.79%), Exide Indus (2.40%), Herohonda Motors (2.32%) and Amtek Auto (2.13%).

The BSE Consumer Durable index surged (2.94%) or 58.69 points to close at 2,057.45 as Videocon Ind (5.85%),Blue Star L (3.40%), Rajesh Export (3.03%) and Titan Ind (2.57%) ended in positive territory.

The BSE FMCG index ended higher by (0.19%) or 3.99 points at 2,058.53. Main Gainers are Godrej Cons (5.69%), Tata Tea (4.22%), Ruchi Soya (2.31%), United Brew (2.17%), Godrej Palm (1.80%) and Nestle Ltd (1.41%).

Sensex slips amid volatility


The market was highly volatile during the day as stocks gyrated between the either sides of the zone throughout the session with Sensex witnessing an intra-day swing of 279 points. The market opened higher at 10,102 but pared the early gains, as investor sentiment turned cautious as Sensex neared its intra-day high of 10,173 points. Sustained selling thereafter in frontline, oil and banking stocks saw Sensex turn negative for the day. After displaying some range-bound moves, the market plunged deep into the red on heavy selling towards the close to touch the day's low of 9,894. Sensex closed the session at 9,928, down 172 points and Nifty was at 3039, down 38 points.

The market breadth was positive. Of the 2,616 stocks traded on the BSE 1,276 stocks advanced whereas 1,258 stocks fell. Eighty two stocks ended unchanged. Among sectoral indices, BSE Oil shed 3.02%, BSE Bankex declined 2.48% and BSE Metal was down 1.52%. However, BSE CD, BSE FMCG , BSE PSU and BSE Realty closed in the green.

Selective buying helped index overcome its losses. Tata Motors gained 4.57% at Rs187.50, DLF advanced 3.47% at Rs318 and Ranbaxy Laboratories added 2.16% at Rs222.05. ITC, Grasim Industries, Tata Power, ONGC, Larsen & Toubro and NTPC notched up steady gains.

Selling was evident in select heavyweights. ICICI Bank dropped 5.49% at Rs446.05, Reliance Industries declined 4.78% at Rs1,284.70, Mahindra & Mahindra tumbled 4.55% at Rs306.60, Maruti Suzuki India shed 3.79% at Rs528.70, HDFC Bank dipped 3.79% at Rs1019.75 and Reliance Infrastructure was down 3.01% at Rs601.20.

Over 3.32 crore shares of Unitech changed hands on the BSE followed by Suzlon Energy (2.53 crore shares), Reliance Natural Resources (2.30 crore shares), HDIL (1.27 crore shares) and Reliance Petroleum (1.24 crore shares).

Valuewise, Reliance Industries clocked a turnover of Rs254 crore on the BSE followed by DLF (Rs217 crore), Reliance Capital (Rs212 crore), HDIL (Rs212 crore) and Unitech (Rs158 crore).

RIL, ICICI Bank lead 1.7% Sensex slide


Investors resorted to profit booking on weakness in global stocks pulling the barometer index BSE Sensex down 171.56 points, or 1.7%. The Sensex shed 244.99 points from the day's high. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries and ICICI Bank led the decline as the barometer index ended below the psychologically important 10,000 mark. Caution ahead of the expiry of the near month derivatives contracts weighed on the market.

From a recent low of 8,739.24 on 2 December 2008, the Sensex had jumped 1,360.67 points or 15.56% in nine trading sessions to 10,099.91 on 19 December 2008

The near month December 2008 derivatives contracts will expire on Wednesday, 24 December 2008, as the markets are closed on Thursday, 25 December 2008, for Christmas.

Volatility was high right from the onset of the trading session. After an initial slide, the market firmed up in early trade on optimism from rate cut by India's biggest lender and on a likely second government stimulus package for the economy. It retreated shortly to reach the day's low in morning trade before bouncing back. The market moved between positive and negative zone later. The market surged to the day's high in afternoon trade. It soon cut the gains. The market weakened in mid-afternoon trade amid volatility. It extended losses. The market cut losses in late trade.

India's largest commercial bank State Bank of India (SBI) on Saturday, 20 December 2008, slashed its lending rate by 75 basis points, to be effective from 1 January 2009. The bank also cut its deposit rates by 25 to 100 basis points across maturities. SBI's rate cut raised expectations other banks would follow suit.

Lower interest rates and a likely second stimulus package for the economy may revive the economy. The Indian economy has slowed down after a strong growth in the past three years.

Global shares weakened on Monday, 22 December 2008, in tandem with the dollar, pressured by signs of a deepening recession in Japan and concerns about the banking sector around the world. Ireland's weekend announcement that it would take stakes in its three main banks for 5.5 billion euros further underlined the global scope of the worst financial crisis in 80 years. Trading in US index futures indicated the Dow could fall 32 points at the opening bell. In Europe, key benchmark indices in France, Germany and UK were down by between 1.08% to 1.77%.

Most Asian stock markets fell, led by material producers and finance companies, on increasing signs the deepening global recession is hurting corporate profits. Key benchmark indices in China, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong and South Korea were down fell by between 0.12% to 3.39%. However, Japan bucked the weak trend in Asian markets after the government unveiled a $54 billion stimulus package for the economy. The Nikkei 225 average was up 1.57%.

Japanese exports plunged at a record annual pace of nearly 27% in November 2008, hit by the fall in global demand as well as the yen's 20 percent rise against the dollar this year, data on Monday showed. The Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa warned that economic conditions were becoming more severe as the United States was entering a recession that could be the longest since World War Two.

Meanwhile, China's central bank cut banks' benchmark lending and deposit rates by 0.27 percentage points today, 22 December 2008, the fifth cut since mid-September 2008. The announcement was made after trading hours in China.

Rating agency S&P on Friday, 19 December 2008, revised its outlook on Europe's largest bank, HSBC Holdings and some of its subsidiaries, to negative from stable, saying the lender's asset quality is likely to deteriorate.

Toyota Motor Corp, the world's biggest automaker, on Monday forecast its first ever group operating loss due to a relentless global slide in car sales and a crippling rise in the yen.

Falling commodities demand prompted Rio Tinto, the world's third-largest mining company, to suspend operations at its Hismelt pig iron plant in Western Australia.

The BSE 30-share Sensex was down 171.56 points, or 1.7%, to 9,928.35. At the day's low of 9,894.01, the Sensex fell 205.90 points in late trade. The Sensex rose 73.43 points at the day's high of 10,173.34 hit in afternoon trade.

The S&P CNX Nifty was down 38.20 points, or 1.24%, to 3,039.30.

The barometer index BSE Sensex is down 10,358.64 points or 51.06% in the calendar year 2008 so far from its close of 20,286.99 on 31 December 2007. It is 11,278.42 points or 53.18% below its all-time high of 21,206.77 struck on 10 January 2008.

The BSE clocked a turnover of Rs 3,849 crore, much lower than Rs 5,066.77 crore on Friday, 19 December 2008.

The BSE Consumer Durables index (up 2.94%), the BSE FMCG index (up 0.19%), the BSE PSU index (up 0.14%), the BSE Realty index (up 0.13%), the BSE Teck index (down 0.51%), the BSE IT index (down 0.52%), the BSE Power index (down 0.75%),the BSE HealthCare index (down 0.86%), the BSE Capital Goods index (down 0.99%), the BSE Auto index (down 1.36%), the BSE Metal index (down 1.52%) outperformed the Sensex.

The BSE Oil & Gas index (down 3.02%), the BSE Bankex (up 2.38%) underperformed the Sensex.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, turned almost even in late trade from a strong breadth earlier in the day. On BSE, 1,276 shares rose as compared with 1,258 that declined. 82 shares remained unchanged.

ITC, Grasim Industries, Tata Power Company rose by between 0.35% to 0.87%.

India's largest private sector company by market capitalization and oil refiner Reliance Industries (RIL) fell 5.06% to Rs 1,318.80 on reports it may face pressure from the US to stop selling gasoline to Iran. As per reports, eight American lawmakers have asked the Export-Import Bank of United States (Ex-Im US) to immediately suspend all financial assistance to Reliance Industries (RIL) till it agrees to stop selling gasoline to Iran.

In a letter written to Ex-Im Bank president James Lambright, the American lawmakers stated that RIL is a major supplier of gasoline to Iran which is detrimental to the national security interests of the US and the loan is in direct collision with its foreign policy on Iran.

India's largest oil exploration firm by revenue ONGC advanced 0.13% as crude oil rose on speculation the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) production cuts next month and US economic stimulus plans will reduce global stockpiles.

Cairn India gained 4.73% after it made an oil and gas discovery near its existing field in Rajasthan.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, February 2008 contract gained $ 1.08, or 2.6% to $43.44 a barrel.

Metal stocks declined on worries a weakening domestic and global economy will hit demand. Steel Authority of India, Tata Steel, Hinalco Industries, Jindal Steel, Sterlite Industries fell by between 0.02% to 4.29%.

Capital goods stocks fell on worries a slowing economy will crimp orders. Larsen & Toubro and ABB fell by between 0.49% to 1.2%. India's largest electric equipment maker by sales Bharat Heavy Electricals fell 2.44% despite winning a contract worth Rs 1175 crore from Jaiprakash Power Ventures to set up a 500-megawatt thermal power plant in central India.

Banking stocks were mixed caught between concerns of fall in net interest margin (NIM) and hopes of surge in lending growth after cut in lending and borrowing rates by SBI. SBI fell 1.03% to Rs 1,274.35, off the day's high of Rs 1,322.

India's second largest private sector bank by net profit HDFC Bank fell 3.01% as its American depository receipt (ADR) fell 1.69% on Friday 19 December 2008.

India's largest private sector bank by net profit ICICI Bank fell 5.49% even as its American depository receipts (ADR) gained 1.3% on Friday, 19 December 2008. Its advance tax payment declined 6% to Rs 470 crore in Q3 December 2008 over Q3 December 2007. ICICI Bank said on Friday, 19 December 2008, joint managing director Chanda Kochhar would succeed Chief Executive K.V. Kamath who retires in April 2009. Kamath, chief executive since 1996, will become non-executive chairman from May 2009 replacing N. Vaghul who retires.

India's largest home loan lender by operating income Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) fell 1.78% after it cut its retail lending rates by 50 basis points, effective today, 22 December 2008. Rates on new home loans up to Rs 20 lakh will drop to 10.25%, while those on bigger loans will attract a rate of 11.25%, it said. HDFC announced the rate cut after trading hours on Friday, 19 December 2008.

Union Bank of India fell 2.17% after bank on 19 December 2008 cut its deposit rates across various maturities by 0.5-1.5%.

Bank of Baroda rose 2.18% after the bank cut benchmark prime lending rate (BPLR) by 75 bps to 12.5% deposit rates by 0.5-1% across all maturities with effect from 1 Jan 2009.

Other PSU banks, Bank of India, Canara Bank, Indian Overseas Bank rose by between 1.41% to 2.18%.

The latest rate cut by SBI and HDFC follows aggressive rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The RBI on 6 December 2008, announced a 100-basis point cut in the repo rate and the reverse repo rate each. Repo rate is the rate at which RBI lends to commercial banks and reverse repo rate is the rate at which RBI accepts deposits from banks.

Outsourcing firms dropped in volatile trade as fears a weak global economy would cut the amount firms spent on technology offset a weaker rupee. India's fourth largest IT exporter by sales Wipro fell 0.92% to Rs 246.60. The stock moved between a low of Rs 240.15 and a high of Rs 253.30. India's second largest IT exporter by sales Infosys fell 0.4% to Rs 1,181.60. The stock moved between a low of Rs 1165.40 and a high of Rs 1,202.70. Infosys sees the Indian IT industry going through a slow phase of growth for some time, its chief executive said last week. India's largest IT exporter by sales Tata Consultancy Services fell 0.56% to Rs 510.35. The stock moved between a low of Rs 503.30 and a high of Rs 518.90.

Satyam Computer Services fell 0.25% to Rs 162.40. The stock moved between a high of Rs 168.60 and a low of Rs 159.60. The company said on Thursday, 18 December 2008 its board will meet on 29 December 2008 to consider buyback of shares, a move aimed at boosting investor confidence. The stock had slumped 30.22% to Rs 158.05 on Wednesday 17 December 2008 after it called off a deal to buy Maytas Properties and Maytas Infra, the two firms promoted by the family of promoter and chairman Ramalinga Raju bowing to investor pressure.

Northgate Technologies was locked at 5% upper limit after foreign fund Swiss Finance Corporation Mauritius hiked its stake to 6.43% in the company.

The Indian rupee eased on Monday as local shares flip-flopped on mixed cues from the world markets. The partially convertible rupee was at 47.33/34 per dollar, off an early low of 47.45, but still weaker than Friday's close of 47.25/26. A weaker rupee augurs well for IT firms which derive a lion's shares of revenue from exports.

Rate sensitive real estate shares were mixed on hopes lower rates will spur housing demand. DLF and Anant Raj Industries rose by between 1.08% to 2.73%. But Indiabulls Real Estate fell 4.79%. Home purchases by home buyers are largely through finance.

Unitech surged 3.39% on reports ITC, hotel chain Accor, and some high net worth individuals are in the race to acquire six hotel properties owned by the realty firm.

Auto stocks fell on concerns about a weakening domestic demand. Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki India, and Hero Honda Motors fell by between 2.32% to 4.55%.

But India's largest commercial vehicle maker by sales Tata Motors jumped 4.91% on reports it has agreed to inject tens of millions of pounds into Jaguar Land Rover, the luxury carmaker earlier it bought this year for $2.3 billion from Ford Motor Co, to prevent an immediate cash flow crisis.

India's largest drugmaker by sales Ranbaxy Laboratories rose 2.05% on reports it is planning to sell three of its manufacturing units in China, Vietnam and Malaysia as part of a strategy to rationalise its business portfolio and cut costs.

Fortis Healthcare spurted 4.87% after it scheduled a board meet on 24 December 2008, to consider raising funds by way of a rights issue.

Aurobindo Pharma galloped 9.43% on receiving nod to launch four drugs in South Africa.

Some infrastructure stocks rose on the government's thrust on the sector. Gammon India, Era Infra Engineering, Gayatri Projects, IVRCL Infrastructure & Projects rose by between 1.2% to 5.46%.

GMR Infrastructure gained 3.15% on increase in promoters' stake in the company.

The government hopes to precipitate infrastructure projects worth Rs 100,000 crore through faster clearances of public-private partnership projects, and ensure their easier financing by way of a tax break on fund raising by the India Infrastructure Finance Company, a specialist lender to the infrastructure sector. The government has allowed India Infrastructure Finance Company (IIFCL) to raise Rs 10,000 crore by issuing tax-free bonds.

IIFCL will use these funds to refinance bank lending of longer maturity to infrastructure projects, especially in highways and port sectors.

BGR Energy Systems soared 2.25% on signing a pact with an Italian firm for condensate polishing plants in India

Texmaco jumped 6.47% on setting record date for a 10-for-1 stock split.

Taj GVK Hotels & Resorts rose 4.89% after the company opened a new five star hotel at Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

Pyramid Saimira Theatre fell 9.95% after the stock market regulator ordered the promoter P.S. Saminathan to make open offer at a minimum price of Rs 250 a share, a 209.78% premium over the ruling market price

Unitech clocked the highest volume of 3.32 crore shares on BSE. Suzlon Energy (2.53 crore shares), Reliance Natural Resources (2.3 crore shares), Housing Development & Infrastructure (1.27 crore shares) and Reliance Petroleum (1.24 crore shares) were the other volume toppers in that order.

Reliance Industries clocked the highest turnover of Rs 254.57 crore on BSE. DLF (Rs 217.62 crore), Reliance Capital (Rs 213.04 crore), Housing Development & Infrastructure (Rs 212.53 crore) and Unitech (Rs 158.45 crore) were the other turnover toppers in that order.

Useful Market Links



1. Reserve Bank of India

2. Ministry of Corporate Affairs

3. Ministry of Finance

4. Insurance Regulatory Authority of India

5. NIPFP DEA Research Program on Capital Flows

5. National Institute of Securities Market

6. SEBI Investor Awareness Website

7. Electronic Data Information Filing and Retrieval System (EDIFAR)

8. Corporate Filing and Dissemination System

Stock Exchanges in India

1. National Stock Exchange

2. The Stock Exchange, Mumbai

3. Ahmedabad Stock Exchange

4. Calcutta Stock Exchange

5. Cochin Stock Exchange Limited

6. Coimbatore Stock Exchange Limited

7. Delhi Stock Exchange

8. Inter-connected Stock Exchange of India Ltd.

9. OTC Exchange of India

10. Saurashtra Kutch Stock Exchange Limited

Colleges Offering Securities Law Courses

1. Government Law College, Mumbai

Market Regulators Worldwide

Asia

1. Capital Market Board (Turkey)

2. Securities Bureau of the Ministry of Finance (Japan)

3. Securities Commission (Malaysia)

4. Securities and Exchange Commission (Bangladesh)

5. Securities and Futures Commission (Hong Kong)

6. Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan

Europe

1. BAWe - Bundesaufsichtsamt für den Wertpapierhandel (Germany)

2. Central Bank of Cyprus

3. CNMV - Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (Spain)

4. COB - Comission des Opérations de Bourse (France)

5. CONSOB - Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa (Italy)

6. Financial Services Department (Jersey)

7. Financial Services Authority (United Kingdom)

Australia

1. Australian Securities Commission

2. The New Zealand Securities Commission

North America

1. British Columbia Securities Commission (Canada)

2. Canadian Grain Commission

3. CFTC - U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission

4. SEC - U.S. Securities& Exchange Commission

Latin America

1. CNBV - Comisión Nacional Bancária y de Valores (Mexico)

2.CNV - Comisión Nacional de Valores (Argentina)

3. CONASEV - Comisión Nacional Supervisora de Seguros y Valores (Peru)

4. SVS - Superintendencia de Valores y Seguros (Chile)

5. Superintendencia de Valores (Colombia)

6. The Jamaica Stock Exchange

7. Comissao De Valores Mobiliários - Brazil

Others

1. BID - Banco Interamericano de Desarollo

2. BIS - Bank for International Settlements

3. COSRA - Council of Securities Regulators of the Americas

4. FASB - Financial Accounting Standards Board

5. FIABV - Federación Iberoamericana de Bolsas de Valores

6. FIBV - Federation Internationale des Bourses de Valeurs

7. ICI - Investment Company Institute

8. IFC - International Finance Corporation

9. World Bank

10. WTO - World Trade Organization

11. Association of National Numbering Agency

12. International Organization of Securities Commissions

SEBI asks Pyramid Saimira to make open offer at Rs 250


The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has directed Pyramid Saimira chairman and managing director (CMD) PS Saminathan to make an open offer to acquire additional 20% shares of the company at a price of not less than Rs 250. According to Sebi, Mr Saminathan crossed the creeping acquisition limits by acquiring companys shares in the period between June and December 2008.

Shareholders of the company would definitely rejoice, as the stock is currently trading at Rs 75.40, much below the proposed open offer price. Interestingly, it appears that a section of market players had an inkling of such a development, as the stock price has already doubled since the start of the current month. The stock that closed at Rs 75.40 on Friday was trading around Rs 38 on December 1.

Sebi, in its order dated December 19, noted that Mr Saminathan acquired 4.89% shares during June 2008 at Rs 250 per share and again in the period between November 19 and December 5, 2008, he acquired 6.91 lakh shares from the market. By making these market purchases, it is clearly observed that you have crossed the creeping acquisition limits and triggered public announcement for open offer, says the Sebi order.

The market regulator has ordered Mr Saminathan to file prospectus for public announcement for open offer and acquiring further 20% of the shareholding within 14 days at Rs 250 per share. In its order, Sebi has also questioned

Mr Saminathan about reports (in October 2008) that he intended to acquire a further 25% stake in the company from other two promoters NC Ravichandran and Nirmal Kotecha for around Rs 150 crore at Rs 200 per share, when the market price was only Rs 60.

Sideways movement to continue


After registering marginal gains in Friday's trades the market is expected to be remain subdued following the mixed global cues. The market may witness sideways movement during intra-day trades. However, the current net inflows from FIIs may help the sentiment to turn positive. The Nifty could test 3,000 on the downside and may test higher levels at 3,130 and on breaching this level may test the short-term target of 3,180, while the Sensex has a likely support at 9,950 and may face resistance at 10,200.

US indices little changed on Friday, with the Dow Jones lost marginally by 25 points at 8579, the Nasdaq gained 12 points to close at 1564 .

Among the Indian ADRs trading on the US bourses, 5 out of 11 floats ended on a positive turf. Tata Motors led the upmove and rose 11.54% while Dr Reddy, Wipro, ICICI Bank and infosys gained over 0.31% - 6% each, while VSNL, Satyam, Rediff, Patni Computers, HDFC Bank and MTNL slipped over 1% - 6%.

Crude oil prices in the global market extended their downward trend, with the Nymex light crude oil for January 09 series slippped by $2.35 at $33.87 a barrel. In the commodity space, the Comex gold for February delivery moved down by $23.20 to settle at $837.40 a troy ounce.

Aptech


We recommend a buy in Aptech from a short-term trading perspective. From the charts of Aptech it is apparent that following a steep decline from the resistance level at Rs 250, the stock found support around Rs 51 in late October (52-week low). Since then, the stock has been in a sideways consolidation in the broad range of Rs 60 and Rs 100. The stock is currently moving up from the lower boundary of this range.

While moving up, it breached its 21- and 50-day moving averages, reinforcing bullish momentum. We observe above two week average volume over the past five trading sessions. The daily relative strength index (RSI) is rising in the neutral region towards the bullish zone and weekly RSI has recovered from the oversold area.

Our short-term forecast for the stock is bullish. We expect it to move up further until it hits our price target of Rs 90 in the forthcoming trading sessions. Traders with short-term perspective can buy the stock while maintaining a stop-loss at Rs 75.

via BL

Daily Call - Dec 22 2008


Markets are likely to begin the week on a positive note, but we see the gains capped at around 3250 Nifty. The level also corresponds with a reading of 10400 in the Sensex, where the older index could face resistance. Read inside for the importance of this level. The cues in the morning are positive, though the US markets could not hold to their gains after Bush gave the auto companies a lifeline till Obama authors his own package for Detroit.



With Christmas on Thursday, the December derivatives will be settled on Wednesday, the 24th. The bulls are fairly comfortable perched with chances of further pushing up the settlement rate. The incoming data in the US this week is likely to be drab at the best and may not have the where with all to move our markets. We will be inward looking and watching the second phase of our stimulus package.

Pre Session Commentary - Dec 22 2008


Today the markets are expected to open up marginally in green and may turn into northward volatility. The fingers are crossed over the second stimulus package and also for the cut in the interest rates. The benchmark indices are also expected to discount the mixed cues from the Asian markets. However, the downbeat factor over the week was the volatility, which indicates that there is some fear still exits in the market. Sequentially, the reaction over the bailout package to the Auto makers on Friday was muted indicating for more economic policy.

On Friday, the market was volatile for the day and ended on a marginal gain. A series of positive news flow over the week has propelled the sentiments of the investors. The BSE sensex managed to end the week above five-digit mark. One good thing that the policymakers have been able to do is by asking the banks to start lending again and restore confidence. On the other end, the falling inflation number and expectation of second stimulus package has acted as confidence booster in the market. Sensex and Nifty gained 0.23% and 0.54%. Realty, Capital Goods, Healthcare and Auto conceded gains of 10.57%, 0.79%, 1.55% and 1.79% respectively.

The BSE Sensex closed higher by 23.48 points at 10,099.91 and NSE Nifty ended high by 16.75 points at 3,077.50. The BSE Mid Caps and Small Caps ended with gain of 59.43 points and 32.07 points at 3,263.99 and 3,744.02 respectively. The BSE Sensex touched intraday high of 10,188.54 and intraday low of 9,987.42.

On Friday, the US markets closed in mix. US President George W Bush bailed out US automakers on Friday with $17.4 billion in emergency loans. However, the santa touch is being felt on the Wall Street and optimism over efforts to fight the year long recession may prompt a year end rally. There are good bargains out there and there is a fair amount of buying in the marketplace. Crude oil futures for the month of January delivery that expired Friday fell $2.35 to $33.87 per barrel on New York Mercantile Exchange. The crude futures have touched an intraday of $32.40 per barrel in the electronic trading, the lowest level for a front-month contract since at least April 2004 after inventories rose to 19-month highs and the investor''s rush to invest in the next month''s contract. However, the oil for February delivery rose 69 cents to end at $42.36 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) closed low with 26 points at 8,579, whereas NASDAQ index managed to gain 12 points at 1,564 and the S&P 500 (SPX) also closed higher by 3 points to close at 889 points.

Indian ADRs ended mixed. In technology sector, Infosys gained by 0.31% and Wipro also gained by 2.70% whereas Satyam that dropped by 4.74% and Patni Computers closing low by 2.41%. In banking sector ICICI Bank surged by 1.30%, HDFC Bank fell by 1.69%. In telecommunication sector, Tata Communication plunged by 5.33%, while MTNL declined by 0.29%.

Today the major stock markets in Asia opened mixed. The Shanghai Composite is trading low by 36.28 at 1,982.17 Hang Seng is low by 150.30 points at 14,977.21. Further Japan''s Nikkei is higher by 118.58 points at 8,707.10. Tiwan weighted low by 46.62 points at 4,647.90 and Singapore’s Strait Times is up by 6.45 points at 1,801.92.

The FIIs on Friday stood as net sellers in equity and as net buyer in debt. Gross equity purchased stood at Rs 2,139.90 Crore and gross debt purchased stood at Rs 776.50 Crore, while the gross equity sold stood at Rs 2,194.10 Crore and gross debt sold stood at Rs 163.90 Crore. Therefore, the net investment of equity and debt reported were Rs (54.20) Crore and Rs 612.50 Crore respectively.

On Friday Indian Rupee closed at 47.26/27 a dollar, about 0.6% weaker than Thursday''s close of 46.95/96. The euro''s fall against the dollar raised expectations of a stronger U.S. currency, but hopes of capital inflows checked losses.

On BSE, total number of shares traded were 42.01 Crore and total turnover stood at Rs 5,066.77 Crore. On NSE, total number of shares traded were 87.86 Crore and total turnover was Rs 13,245.87 Crore.

Top traded volumes on NSE Nifty – Unitech with 106458838 shares, Suzlon Energy with total volume traded 52240172 shares, DLF with 21499700 shares, Satyam with 14896609 shares, followed by SAIL with 14746746 shares.

On NSE Future and Options, total number of contracts traded in index futures was 1107385 with a total turnover of Rs 16075.49 Crore. Along with this total number of contracts traded in stock futures were 1476299 with a total turnover of Rs 15972.99 Crore. Total numbers of contracts for index options were 1162996 with a total turnover of Rs 17895.06 Crore and total numbers of contracts for stock options were 64649 and notional turnover was Rs 726.75 Crore.

Today, Nifty would have a support at 2,975 and resistance at 3,160 and BSE Sensex has support at 9,850 and resistance at 10,300.

Offtopic - Value of 500 rupees


Market may open higher


Key benchmark indices are likely to open firm on a likely second round of government stimulus package to pump prime the ailing economy and on expectations of a further fall of key policy rates with the inflation rate dropping to a nine-month low. However volatility may rise ahead of the December series F&O contracts expiry on Wednesday, 24 December 2008.

Global cues were mixed despite the US President George W Bush announcing a baiout for US automakers on Friday with $17.4 billion in emergency loans to stave off a collapse that would have cost hundreds of thousands of jobs. But Bush attached a string of conditions to the 3-year loans and set an end-March deadline for General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC to prove they can restructure enough to ensure their survival or have the loans called back.

Asian markets were trading mixed today, 22 December 2008. China's Shanghai Composite was down 1.14% or 22.93 points at 1,995.53, Hong Kong's Hang Seng slipped 0.85% or 129.05 points at 14,998.46, Singapore's Straits Times fell 0.19% or 3.44 points at 1,792.03, Taiwan's Taiwan Weighted declined 0.54% or 25.35 points at 4,669.17. However, Japan's Nikkei gained 1.42% or 121.90 points at 8,710.42 and South Korea's Seoul Composite was up 0.82% or 9.73 points at 1,190.70.

US markets pared early gains driven by the $17.5 billion auto bailout plan to settle on a mixed note on Friday, 19 December 2008. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 25.88 points, or 0.30% to 8,579.11. But the Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 2.60 points, or 0.29% to 887.88 and the Nasdaq Composite Index added 11.95 points, or 0.77% to 1,564.32.

Back home, as per reports, rollover of Nifty positions from December 2008 series to January 2009 series stood at 31% as of Friday, 19 December 2008.

Also there is a possibility of dip in trading volumes due to a likely decline in foreign institutional participation on account of the Christmas and New Year celebrations. In that case, domestic institutions are expected to play a key role in determining the market direction. Market remains closed on Thursday, 25 December 2008 on account of Christmas.

Key benchmark indices rebounded from day's low in late trade on Friday, 19 December 2008, triggered by expectations of a second government stimulus package for the economy and on hopes of further cut in interest rates by the central bank. The BSE 30-share Sensex rose 23.48 points, or 0.23%, to 10,099.91 and the S&P CNX Nifty was up 16.75 points, or 0.55%, to 3,077.50, on that day.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers worth Rs 378.43 crore while mutual funds bought shares worth Rs 410.85 crore on Friday, 19 December 2008, according to provisional data on NSE.

Technical Trends - Dec 22 2008


Technical Trends - Dec 22 2008

SGX Nifty Live Update - Dec 22 2008


SGX Nifty at 3,078.5 and is trading flat at +2.5

My Portfolio - Dec 22 2008






SOLD - Manaksia, Natco Pharma, Zylog Systems, Cholamandalam DBS and Sterling Biotech

ADDED - NIIT Ltd

Reshuffling the portfolio a bit and see if I could generate cash for the next panic day

Daily Trading Calls - Dec 22 2008








Nifty (3078) Sup 3025 Res 3125

Buy Bharat Forge (87) SL 85 Target 91, 92

Buy Sun TV (166) SL 163
Target 172, 173

Buy Maruti (549) SL 544
Target 559, 561

Buy IOC (424) SL 419
Target 434, 436

Sell HDFC (1524) SL 1545
Target 1485, 1475

Daily News Roundup - Dec 22 2008


Reliance Industries may go slow on certain of its planned projects such as the Rs50bn Rewas port project, Navi Mumbai SEZ and the Rs300bn semi-conductor project.(BL)

HDFC has reduced its Retail PLR by 50bps and introduced two slabs for floating interest rate home loans.(BL)

ACC puts Rs6bn RMC expansion plans on hold. (ET)

SBI announced a 0.75% cut in its PLR and a 0.25-1% reduction in deposit rates from January 1.(FE)

US Congressmen have asked the country's Export-Import Bank to suspend US$900mn in aid to Reliance Industries over its ties with Iran.(DNA)

Nalco has entered into a JV agreement with United Arab Emirates government linked RAK Minerals and Metals Investment for setting up a 0.5mn ton smelter in Indonesia at a project cost of around US$4bn.(DNA)

Parsvnath Developers says that work on 12 of its proposed SEZs is proceeding at a slow pace as the land acquisition for those projects was not yet complete.(BL)

Reliance Industries may begin production at KG Basin by Feb 2009. (ET)

Reliance Industries gets US government Rs28mn grant for liquid fuel project. (ET)

US put pressure on Reliance Industries to stop gasoline sales to Iran. (ET)

Liberia has cleared Tata Steel of all allegations and has invited it to join the bidding process for the Western Cluster iron ore project in that country.(FE)

Sun Pharmaceutical announced to extend the tender offer for the purchase of all outstanding shares of Taro to January 9. (BS)

Wockhardt plans preferential allotment to raise Rs5bn. (BS)

Tatas buy 300 acres in Tamil Nadu for titanium unit. (BS)

High Court approves the Scheme of Amalgamation of its subsidiary Sesa Industries with the Sesa Goa. (BS)

Ceat announces price cuts to the tune of 3 – 4% on its truck tyres. (ET)

Bosch to expand India biz, open 100 showrooms in 2 years. (ET)

Ranbaxy Laboratories rejigs board names Malvinder as chairman. (ET)

RPG exits mobile retail space; sells 50% to JV partner. (ET)

ITC, Accor in race to acquire six hotel properties owned by Unitech. (ET)

Ranbaxy may sell 3 plants in Asia to rationalize cost. (ET)

Ess Dee Aluminium to re-open IFL’s Hoera plant by March. (ET)

Coal India to expedite land acquisition for new projects. (ET)

Unitech plans to open its first hotel next year. (ET)

AP Government grants Rs1.21bn project to Maytas Infra. (ET)

SEBI directs PSTL promoters to make open offer at Rs250 or more. (ET)

GoAir to expand fleet size to 35 by FY11. (ET)

Fortis plans to raise Rs18-20bn via rights or warrants issue. (BS)

Tata’s to raise Rs150bn via public offer of debt securities, sale of Tata Motor vehicle loan pool, PE placement and soliciting public deposit. (BS)

Rashtriya Ispat Nigam to have majority stake in Bird Group of companies. (BS)

KEC International receives an order for Rs880mn from national electricity company of Tajikistan.(BL)

GMR Group is looking at setting up a greenfield power project in Europe.(FE)

C&C Constructions says it has received an order worth Rs7.8bn to build a freight corridor in Bihar.(FE)

Jindal Drugs to start Jammu plant by Feb 2009. (BS)

DoT may refer the issue of levying administrative charges on 3G mobile operators to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs.(BL)

Telecom commission has rejected TRAI proposal to levy an administrative charge on firms winning 3G spectrum in an auction due in January.(FE)

Borrowing from international markets could now be opened for real estate companies, the only industrial sector that has so far not been allowed to tap the route.(FE)

Forex reserves rose to US$250bn as on December 12 from US$246bn a week earlier.(FE)

Planning Commission says the country's economy will need stimulus package in next fiscal as well since global slowdown will continue in 2009-10.(FE)

Government may relax ECB norms for NBFCs, realty. (BS)

Advance tax paid by top 100 tax-paying firms dipped 21% in Q3 of the current fiscal compared with the same period last year. (BS)

Centre weighs reimposition of 10% CVD on import of long steel items. (ET)

Government considering refinancing state transport firms. (BS)

Shipping industry seeks Rs100bn fund from centre. (BS)

Government mulls long term funding for infra companies via IIFCL. (BS)

Back in business!


We can be hurt, but not knocked down – Ratan Tata.

India's twin towers (of terror) - The Taj and The Trident Oberoi - are back in business. It not only underlines the city's resilient spirit but also epitomises the nation's new-found confidence, which has seen it withstand several tragedies in the past few years. It is this courage of conviction that will stand India in good stead in the next couple of years, as it battles a crippling global recession and domestic slowdown.

The bulls too have been more or less back in business over the past couple of weeks. They will hope to be at peace during the Christmas week. But Asian markets are pretty mixed this morning. US stock benchmarks too ended mixed on Friday while European markets declined marginally. The start today may be flat at best. Wild swings will be the order of this week due to derivative settlement and lower volume.

The Government and regulators have played their roles in perking up market sentiment by unleashing a string of fiscal as well as monetary steps. More such measures are in the offing over the next few weeks, as inflation has cooled off substantially and is set to fall further. Banks have also started cutting rates, which spells good news for both consumers as well as corporates. The rupee has strengthened against the dollar and even the elusive FII money is also finding its way into the markets. Other macro-economic factors, however, are yet to show any signs of improvement. The market may find it a bit tough to build on the recent gains if these data points continue to be weak.

Keep an eye on the political front with general elections lined up for April-May. Global trends and news will of course have a major bearing on the market's near-term as well as long-term direction. There is always a possibility of some NAV prop-up which could drive select stocks higher; that may happen next week. We expect the bulls to maintain their hold on the market for a while before a fresh round of selling hits world markets. Volatility may inch higher ahead of Wednesday's F&O expiry (a day earlier due to Christmas holiday on Thursday).

US market may also turn more volatile as many market participants may choose to extend their Christmas holidays. US markets will close early on Wednesday and will remain closed on Thursday. Financial markets across the globe may witness less trading activity this week. The Indian markets too will remain shut on Thursday.

FIIs were net buyers of Rs3.78bn (provisional) in the cash segment on Thursday while the local institutions poured in Rs4.1bn. In the F&O segment, the foreign funds were net buyers at Rs3.47bn. On Thursday, FIIs were net sellers at Rs542mn in the cash segment. Mutual Funds too pulled out Rs1.81bn on the same day.

US stocks ended mixed on Friday with the blue chip Dow Jones Industrial Average slipping marginally, while the broader market barometer S&P 500 index and technology-laden Nasdaq Composite index posting moderate gains.

The Dow was down by 25.88 points or 0.3% to end at 8579.11, while the S&P added nearly 0.3% to 887.88, and the Nasdaq closed 0.75% higher at 1564.32. The Russell 2000 Index of small US companies climbed 1.5%.

About three stocks gained for every two that fell on the New York Stock Exchange.

Energy, IT and financials paced the gains that stretched to include all but two of the S&P 500 index's 10 industry groups.

The US stocks opened sharply higher, but the rally was short-lived, as investors remained nervous about the state of the world's largest economy.

The Dow erased a 182-point advance as Citigroup slid 5.5% after its debt ratings were cut, while Exxon Mobil and Chevron retreated almost 3% as oil tumbled below US$33 a barrel.

US stocks advanced for a second straight week after President George W. Bush announced a US$17.4bn rescue plan for the troubled automakers. The Dow was off about 0.6% for the week, while the S&P 500 gained 1% and the Nasdaq rose 1.5%.

GM shares rallied 23% as Bush announced US$13.4 billion in emergency loans for the largest U.S. automaker and rival Chrysler. Ford Motor jumped 3.9%, while car-parts supplier ArvinMeritor climbed 5.9%.

Friday's session was particularly volatile due to options expirations - a quarterly event called "quadruple witching." Light trading volume also contributed to volatility.

Stocks slumped on Monday but the market rallied on Tuesday after the Fed lowered its key interest rate to a range between 0% and 0.25%. The Fed also reaffirmed its plans to use more unconventional methods to try and get the economy back on track.

The Treasuries rallied with the yield on the benchmark 10-year note and the 30-year note both falling to historic lows.

Stocks slumped anew on Wednesday after Morgan Stanley reported a USUS$2.3bn loss. The effects of quadruple witching were apparent on Thursday as investors rushed to reconcile positions ahead of the options expiration. Stocks seesawed for most of the day before falling sharply in the final hour of trade.

"Allowing the US auto industry to collapse is not a responsible course of action," said President Bush in a nationally televised address in the morning, when he unveiled the White House's plan to bail out the troubled Detroit industry.

Speaking in New York on Thursday night, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said he felt a rescue of the ailing car industry should not have been left to the White House. "I did not want to be making this argument - I felt something should be done by Congress," Paulson said.

Yet in light of the fragile state of the economy, it would seem to be an imprudent risk to allow the industry to collapse, he said.

The banking sector was also in focus after Standard & Poor's cut its credit rating or outlook on 12 major international firms, citing ongoing woes in the industry amid deepening troubles in the global economy.

Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo were downgraded or had a banking division downgraded.

Recent government support for the financial services industry is helpful, the economic environment remains challenging and banks can expect "lower profitability levels and significantly higher loan losses in the medium term, the rating agency said.

Shares of Weyerhaeuser Co. fell 9.5% after the paper and building products giant cut its quarterly dividend and costs in response to a slowdown in business.

Shares of Research In Motion (RIM) jumped 11.4% after the smart phone maker surprised investors with a better-than-expected forecast for the fourth quarter.

Oracle shares also advanced after the software giant posted a small drop in second-quarter profits that nonetheless cheered investors who had worried about a sharper slowdown given the global recession.

In other company news, Japanese electronic company Panasonic said that it would acquire its rival Sanyo for up to US$9bn.

Light, sweet crude for January delivery fell US$2.35 to settle at US$33.87 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The January contract, which expired on Friday, dropped nearly US$4 to settle below US$37 a barrel in the previous session.

Crude for February delivery rose 58 cents to US$42.25 a barrel.

Prices for US Treasury bonds fell after a big rally in the previous sessions. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note rose to 2.12% from a historic low of 2.07% on Thursday. The 30-year long bond retreated, with a yield of 2.55%.

The dollar rose against the euro to trade at US$1.3838 in afternoon trading. The greenback rose against Japan's yen after the Bank of Japan cut a key interest rate to 0.1% from 0.3%. Gold for February delivery dropped US$23.20 to settle at US$837.4 an ounce.

Shares of oil producers weighed on Europe on Friday, but most stocks came off their session lows after the US stepped up efforts to support the economy with a plan to bail out Detroit's beleaguered automakers.

The pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 index stayed in the red, down 0.5% at 196.32, as losses for oil producers kept the pressure on.

The UK's FTSE 100 index fell 1% to 4,286.93, while Germany's DAX 30 index declined 1.3% to 4,696.70 and the French CAC-40 index was off 0.3% at 3,225.90.

A volatile market ended the day on a flat note, however, managed to hold above the 10k levels. It was the realty stocks which were in the limelight followed by the auto and the Pharma stocks. Finally, the BSE benchmark Sensex ended at 10,099 adding 23 points and the NSE Nifty index ended at 3,07 adding 16 points.

Market breath was positive, 1,481 stocks advanced against 1,036 declines, while, 79 stocks remained unchanged.

Among the 30-components of Sensex, the big gainers were DLF (10%), JP Associates (6%), M&M (4.2%) and Sterlite Ind (4.2%). On the other hand, major losers were Satyam (4%) and ONGC (3.2%).

Shares of C&C Construction rallied by over 6% to Rs214 after the company announced that it won order worth Rs7.81bn in Bihar. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs219 and a low of Rs208 and recorded volumes of over 2,000 shares on BSE.

Shares of Wockhardt Pharma surged by over 3.2% to Rs107 after reports stated that the company was looking for potential buyers for its French subsidiary Negma laboratories to repay debt to investors. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs109 and a low of Rs103 and recorded volumes of over 1,00,000 shares on BSE.

Shares of DLF surged by over 10% to Rs308 after the company announced that it unveiled its retail plans and aims for a targets of US$1bn revenue in five years.

Reports also stating that the company was planning to add five new international brands to its existing portfolio of its subsidiary DLF brands. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs314 and a low of Rs274 and recorded volumes of over 2,00,00,000 shares on BSE.

Shares of Suzlon Energy ended lower by 0.5% to Rs58. The company announced that it is in talks to sell a 5% stake to Carlyle Group for about US$100mn, stated reports. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs62 and a low of Rs57 and recorded volumes of over 5,00,00,000 shares on BSE.

KEC International advanced by 5% to Rs149 after the company announced that it secured Rs880mn order from Barki Tojik, national electricity company of Tajikistan. The scrip touched an intra-day high of Rs149 and a low of Rs142 and recorded volumes of over 1,00,000 shares on NSE.

The bulls will hope to Jingle all the way in this Christmas-shortened week. Having said that, the euphoria may prove to be short lived and the markets could turn lower again on concerns about a weakening global economic outlook. In the Indian market, we have the F&O expiry which could well show gains for the month.

The Government may drop more hints on its next round of stimulus package, which is also likely to include more rate reductions.

Weekly Technicals - Dec 22 2008


Weekly Technicals - Dec 22 2008

Morning Note - Dec 22 2008


Morning Note - Dec 22 2008

US Market ends mixed on auto bailout news


Better guidance from Oracle and RIMM help Nasdaq end in the green

The US Market ended mixed for the week that ended on Friday, 19 December, 2008. The indices practically finished in the territory where it was since the start of the month. There was once again a spate of bad news but market digested them comfortably. The only sliver lining in the week was perhaps the decision that was reached regarding the bailout of the automobile companies. Auto bailout news, extremely low crude price and earnings cautions dominated the week which was fully in search of direction.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 50.57 points (0.6%) for the week to end at 8,579.11. Tech - heavy Nasdaq gained 23.6 points (1.5%) to end at 1,564.32. S&P 500 gained 8.15 points (0.9%) to end at 887.88.

The week marked a big decision after the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) cut the fed funds target rate from 1.00% to a range of 0.00% to 0.25%. In addition, the FOMC directive implied the Fed stands ready to do any, and all, things possible to stimulate the credit market and the economy, including possibly buying a lot of long-term Treasury securities.

Among major earning reports for the week, Goldman Sachs reported its first loss since its inception as a publicly-traded company. Best Buy beat earnings estimates for its third quarter but observed that there has been a dramatic and potentially long-lasting change in consumer behavior.

Among economic reports for the week, industrial production declined 0.6% in November. Housing starts declined 18.9%, marking the largest decline since March 1984, building permits hit a record low, and weekly initial jobless claims held near a 26-year high.

In the US stock market on Friday, 19 December, stocks ended the day on a mixed note. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average ended down by 25.8 points at 8,579.11, the Nasdaq closed higher by 11.95 points at 1,564.32 and the S&P 500 closed higher by 2.7 points at 886.7.

Automakers got something to cheer on Friday after the news hit the wires that the White House is providing $13.4 billion in TARP funds to automakers as part of an effort to shore up their finances. An additional $4 billion will be available for GM in February. The loans are being made on the contingency that the automakers have a viable plan by March 31 to become profitable.

GM ended as one of the main winners on Friday after climbing up by more than 22%. Twenty four of thirty Dow stocks ended in the green. Citigroup ended as one of the major laggards.

The technology sector managed to outperform on Friday after Oracle and Research In Motion posted in-line earnings results for the latest quarter. Their strength helped the Nasdaq outperform. In other earnings news, Accenture made its way to a new December high after posting better-than-expected results for its latest quarter.

On Friday, crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for January delivery closed at $33.87/barrel (lower by $2.35 or 6.5%) on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier in the day, prices touched a low of $32.4. Prices reached a high of $147 on 11 July but have dropped almost 76% since then. For the week, prices ended lower by almost $12.41 or 27%. For this year in 2008, crude prices have dropped 65%.

Friday marked the last trading day for the January contract. Oil for February delivery, now the most active contract, rose 69 cents to end at $42.36 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Friday. The contract lost 14% during the week.

After a meeting in Oran, Algeria, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed to cut 4.2 million barrels a day from its actual September production level of 29.045 million barrels a day on 17 December, 2008. The production cut is effective on 1 January, 2009. Excluding previously announced cuts, OPEC will actually cut its daily production by 2.2 million barrels from current levels. That constitutes its biggest production cut ever.

At the currency market on Friday, the dollar was up against most major counterparts Thursday, jumping against the euro after the European Central Bank cut its deposit rate and lifted lending rates in the wake of the U.S. Federal Reserve's easing earlier this week. The dollar index gained 3% in the past two sessions.

For the year, Dow, Nasdaq and S&P 500 are down by 35.3%, 41% and 39.5% respectively.

Precious metals turn dull for second straight day


Gold and silver prices end higher for the week

Bullion metal prices ended lower for second straight day on Friday, 19 December, 2008. Bullion metals fell due to the rising dollar. The dollar became a bit strong today after the European Central Bank cut its deposit rate and lifted lending rates in the wake of the U.S. Federal Reserve's easing earlier this week.. 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 and also vice versa. The falling crude price also added to further weakness in the bullion metal prices.

On Friday, Comex Gold for February delivery fell $23.2 (2.7%) to close at $837.4 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. For the week, gold gained 2.1%. On 17 March, 2008 prices had skyrocketed to a high of $1,034/ounce. But prices have dropped significantly (19%) since then.

For the month of November, gold prices ended higher by 14%. Prior to this, for the month of October, gold had ended lower by 18%. It was the biggest percentage loss for gold since February, 1983.

This year, gold prices are flat till date. Futures have averaged $860 in 2008. The dollar index has gained 6% this year. For the third quarter ended September, 2008, gold prices ended lower by 5.1%. It was the first quarterly loss for the yellow metal since the second quarter in FY 2007. Prior to that, the yellow metal ended second quarter with a marginal gain of 0.7%. For first quarter prices gained 10.7%.

On Friday, Comex silver futures for March delivery fell 28 cents (2.4%) to $10.85 an ounce. For the week, silver gained 63 cents (6%). For the month of November, silver prices had gained 5%. Till date, silver has lost 28% this year.

For the month of October, silver had slipped by 20%. Silver had ended month and quarter of September 2008 with a loss of 10%. For the second quarter, it had gained a paltry 1.4%. Silver had gained 16% in Q1. The metal also had gained for seven straight years.

At the currency market on Friday, the dollar was up against most major counterparts Thursday, jumping against the euro after the European Central Bank cut its deposit rate and lifted lending rates in the wake of the U.S. Federal Reserve's easing earlier this week.

The Federal Reserve surprised market earlier this week to save the U.S. economy slashing interest rates to just above zero and promising to try an array of new economic measures to stimulate spending. The central bank's Federal Open Market Committee established a target range for the federal funds rate of zero to 0.25%, effectively cutting its key rate for overnight lending to banks by between 0.75% and 1%.

Earlier this year, the weakening dollar and higher global demand for raw materials had led to records this year for commodities including gold. Gold reached a record in March as a U.S. housing slump and credit crisis spurred the Federal Reserve to slash borrowing costs. In the latest move, the Federal Reserve has cuts its target bank lending rate to 0.25% from 5.25% in September, 2007. The Fed did it in nine steps.

Gold had witnessed the greatest annual gain in twenty eight years by gaining $200/ounce (31%) in FY 2007 as lower interest rates had sent the dollar tumbling, and crude-oil prices rose to a record. Silver had climbed 16% in FY 2007. In 2006, silver had jumped 46% while gold gained 23%.

Crude drops below $34


January contract futures drop drastically on the last day of trading

Crude prices continued to drop substantially even on Friday, 19 December, 2008. Prices fell due to a strong dollar, ongoing global economic crisis and gathering crude stockpiles due to lower energy demand.

On Friday, crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for January delivery closed at $33.87/barrel (lower by $2.35 or 6.5%) on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier in the day, prices touched a low of $32.4. Prices reached a high of $147 on 11 July but have dropped almost 76% since then. For the week, prices ended lower by almost $12.41 or 27%. For this year in 2008, crude prices have dropped 65%.

Friday marked the last trading day for the January contract. Oil for February delivery, now the most active contract, rose 69 cents to end at $42.36 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Friday. The contract lost 14% during the week

For the month of November, crude prices ended lower by 19.7%. Before this, for the month of October, 2008, crude prices had ended lower by 32.6%, the biggest monthly drop since 1983.

After a meeting in Oran, Algeria, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed to cut 4.2 million barrels a day from its actual September production level of 29.045 million barrels a day on 17 December, 2008. The production cut is effective on 1 January, 2009. Excluding previously announced cuts, OPEC will actually cut its daily production by 2.2 million barrels from current levels. That constitutes its biggest production cut ever.

At the currency market on Friday, the dollar was up against most major counterparts Thursday, jumping against the euro after the European Central Bank cut its deposit rate and lifted lending rates in the wake of the U.S. Federal Reserve's easing earlier this week.

The Energy Information Administration reported earlier during the middle of the week that that U.S. crude supplies rose by 500,000 barrels to stand at 321.3 million barrels during the week ended 12 December, 2008. At 321.3 million barrels, total U.S. crude inventories were 17.5 million barrels above the five-year average and 24.4 million barrels above year-ago levels. The EIA also reported an increase of 1.3 million barrels in gasoline stocks and a rise of 2.9 million barrels in distillate stocks last week.

For the third quarter of the year crude prices ended lower by 28%. This was the biggest quarterly drop since 1991. Before that, crude prices had gained 38% in the second quarter of this year. It was the biggest quarterly increase in nine years. For the month of September, prices registered drop of 13%.

Against this background, January reformulated gasoline gained 1 cent to end at 97 cents a gallon and January heating oil rose 2 cents to $1.39 a gallon.

January natural-gas futures fell 22 cents to end at $5.33 per million British thermal units.