Market seen extending four-day losses on weak global cues

The market is seen extending last four days' losses on weak global cues. US stocks tumbled in their worst three-day slide in 10 months on Friday, pulling Asian stocks lower today, 25 January 2010. The S&P CNX Nifty futures for January 2010 expiry were trading 19 points lower in Singapore.

State Bank of India, Sterlite Industries, Mahindra and Mahindra, Hero Honda Motors, and Hindalco Industries are among the key result announcements on Monday, 25 January 2010.

Maruti Suzuki India reported higher than expected earnings in the third quarter. Its net profit surged 221.92% to Rs 687.53 crore on a 62.50% rise in sales to Rs 7372.65 crore in Q3 December 2009 over Q3 December 2008.

Net profit of Grasim Industries rose 80.81% to Rs 595.88 crore in on a 14.79% rise in sales to Rs 3051.89 crore in Q3 December 2009 over Q3 December 2008. Aggregate results of 599 Indian companies showed 57.1% advance in net profit on 20.40% rise in sales in quarter ended December 2009 over the quarter ended December 2008.

Asian stocks fell for a sixth day today echoing fall in Wall Street on Friday. Key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, Singapore were down by between 0.27% and 1.20%. Shanghai Composite rose 0.08% and Taiwan Weighted gained 0.06%.

US stocks tumbled in their worst three-day slide in 10 months on Friday, 22 January 2010, on fears the White House's plan to curb bank risk-taking would cut profits and a drop in tech shares after Google Inc's disappointing results.

Uncertainty about the Senate's confirmation of Ben Bernanke for another term as the Federal Reserve's chairman also rattled investors in a week when political squabbles helped erase stocks' gains for 2010.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 216.90 points, or 2.09%, to 10,172.98. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index slid 24.72 points, or 2.21%, to 1,091.76. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 60.41 points, or 2.67%, to 2,205.29.

Fears that China will get more aggressive in reducing the risk of asset bubbles sent investors bailing from China-focused stock funds for an 18th consecutive week, research firm EPFR Global said on Friday. Investors pulled $348 million from China equity funds in the week ended 20 January 2010, the biggest outflow in 18 weeks.

Though global emerging market equity funds attracted $748 million in fresh money in the week of Jan. 20, Asia ex-Japan equity funds took in only $29 million because of the China-related outflows. Net inflows to emerging market bond funds hit the highest in eight weeks and US bond funds extended a streak of inflows to 55 weeks.

Back home, key benchmark indices extended their losses for the fourth straight session on Friday, 22 January 2010 after US President Barack Obama proposed limiting risk-taking at US banks. The BSE 30-share Sensex settled 191.46 points or 1.12% lower at 16,859.68, below the psychological 17,000 mark.

As per provisional figures on NSE, the foreign funds sold shares worth Rs 2415.49 crore and domestic funds bought shares worth Rs 1953.97 crore on Friday, 22 January 2010.