(Courtesy Indian Express Finance)
As the market picked up the pieces from the global meltdown and inched back to its glorious milestones, the Tata group has leapt ahead of the bourses this year. Thirty-one companies from the salt-to software conglomerate saw their combined market capitalisation soar by more than Rs 2 lakh crore, or by over 150%, in 2009 (up to December 24, 2009). The jewel in the Tata crown, Tata Consultancy Services, had a rocking year, with its market capitilisation trebling, by 213%.
Investors in Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries group were also rewarded handsomely. The combined market capitalisation of the group swelled more than Rs 1.5 lakh crore, with flagship RIL recording an 80% jump in M-cap.
Together, the wealth of India's top 25 industrial houses-ranked according to turnover and measured by M-cap-rose by 113% to Rs 15.22 lakh crore, from Rs 7.15 lakh crore at the end of last year. In the same period, the benchmark 30-scrip Sensex (^BSESN : 17359.1 -42.46) gained nearly 80% to reach 17,360.61 points, while the broader 50-scrip Nifty (^NSEI : 5173.05 -5.35) moved up by 75%.
Among the larger business houses, Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group saw its M-cap rising by just 15.6% this year.
The highest percentage increase, of over 350%, was recorded by the Om Prakash Jindal group; M-cap of group firm Jindal Steel & Power soared 366%. Power companies have been on steroids as such; the M-cap of Torrent Power moved up 326%.
Another sector that gave investors big returns was automobiles. After being battered towards the end of 2008, in the wake of the economic slowdown, companies such as Bajaj Auto, Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra rebounded smartly, as consumer demand picked up.
The Indian stock market has been among the top five performers in Asia, ahead of China, this year. Foreign institutional investors have shown a good appetite for Indian stocks, buying equities worth over $16 billion, with the bulk of the money coming in after the Lok Sabha election results were announced on May 16, 2009.
With the outlook for the economy improving, India Inc is expected to turn in fairly good profit numbers in 2010-11. However, given the sharp run-up in stocks in 2009 and the fairly rich valuations, market watchers believe it would be unreasonable to expect similar returns in 2010.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Monday, December 28, 2009
GLOBAL ECONOMY 2010 - Crystal ball gazing
Courtesy Reuters
Thanks to roughly $5 trillion in special lending and spending programs, world finance leaders have managed to revive economic growth.
In 2010, the bills may start coming due.
The United States, the euro zone, Britain and Japan are all expected to report economic growth for the final three months of 2009, according to a recent Reuters poll of more than 150 economists. Official figures aren't due for several more weeks, but recent reports on factory activity and world trade point to a stronger fourth quarter.
While the pace of growth may slacken a bit in 2010, most forecasters think it will stay positive in advanced economies. But unemployment is likely to remain uncomfortably high, which suggests already strained government finances will worsen.
That will leave countries with limited resources to step in should the economy falter again. And the rising debt burden is beginning to raise alarms with some economists and investors.
The International Monetary Fund thinks debt as a percentage of gross domestic product will rise in all of the Group of Seven wealthiest countries in 2010, and probably remain elevated at least through 2014.
"The foundation of the global economy remains unstable even if the cracks have been smoothed over and we are all happy to forget what lies beneath the heavy layer of the public sector's liquidity insurance," said Lena Komileva, an economist with Tullett Prebon in London.
Komileva argues that the global economy is in the midst of a "mega cycle of multi-year economic trends" that won't quickly be resolved, even after growth is firmly established.
In addition to high government debt, many consumers are carrying large debt burdens, particularly in the United States and Britain. There is also the matter of elevated unemployment in most of the advanced economies, and credit is still not flowing normally between banks and borrowers.
Those factors, along with a tame inflation outlook, will probably give the major central banks ample reason to keep benchmark interest rates unusually low, at least through the first half of 2010 and perhaps well into 2011.
Longer-term interest rates, however, may rise anyway should investors grow more anxious about how countries will repay their debt when sluggish economic growth is curtailing tax revenues and aging populations are draining resources.
Higher long-term rates would make it costlier for businesses to fund investment or expansion, and for households to borrow money to buy cars and homes, putting a drag on the economic recovery.
Thanks to roughly $5 trillion in special lending and spending programs, world finance leaders have managed to revive economic growth.
In 2010, the bills may start coming due.
The United States, the euro zone, Britain and Japan are all expected to report economic growth for the final three months of 2009, according to a recent Reuters poll of more than 150 economists. Official figures aren't due for several more weeks, but recent reports on factory activity and world trade point to a stronger fourth quarter.
While the pace of growth may slacken a bit in 2010, most forecasters think it will stay positive in advanced economies. But unemployment is likely to remain uncomfortably high, which suggests already strained government finances will worsen.
That will leave countries with limited resources to step in should the economy falter again. And the rising debt burden is beginning to raise alarms with some economists and investors.
The International Monetary Fund thinks debt as a percentage of gross domestic product will rise in all of the Group of Seven wealthiest countries in 2010, and probably remain elevated at least through 2014.
"The foundation of the global economy remains unstable even if the cracks have been smoothed over and we are all happy to forget what lies beneath the heavy layer of the public sector's liquidity insurance," said Lena Komileva, an economist with Tullett Prebon in London.
Komileva argues that the global economy is in the midst of a "mega cycle of multi-year economic trends" that won't quickly be resolved, even after growth is firmly established.
In addition to high government debt, many consumers are carrying large debt burdens, particularly in the United States and Britain. There is also the matter of elevated unemployment in most of the advanced economies, and credit is still not flowing normally between banks and borrowers.
Those factors, along with a tame inflation outlook, will probably give the major central banks ample reason to keep benchmark interest rates unusually low, at least through the first half of 2010 and perhaps well into 2011.
Longer-term interest rates, however, may rise anyway should investors grow more anxious about how countries will repay their debt when sluggish economic growth is curtailing tax revenues and aging populations are draining resources.
Higher long-term rates would make it costlier for businesses to fund investment or expansion, and for households to borrow money to buy cars and homes, putting a drag on the economic recovery.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
POLL - Sensex set for slower rise in 2010
The BSE Sensex is likely to extend its recent rally into 2010, underpinned by strong economic growth and an improving earnings outlook, but it is unlikely to repeat 2009's spectacular rise, a Reuters poll has shown.
The benchmark Sensex is likely to rise nearly 9 percent by mid-2010 and by more than 12 percent by the end of next year from Wednesday's close of 16,912.77, the poll has found.
The median forecast of around 20 brokerages and investment houses, taken over the past week, has the benchmark rising to 18,375 points by the middle of 2010, and will likely end the year at 19,000.
"The Indian economy will do well. Corporate earnings will do well," said Jigar Shah, senior vice-president of Kim Eng Securities, who saw the Sensex rising to 21,000 by mid-2010.
The Sensex hit a record high of 21,206.77 in Jan. 2008.
Other analysts were worried that the withdrawal of stimulus measures and the impact of this year's weak monsoon could temper the stock market's strength.
"A lot depends on monsoon. We are on the edge as far as food reserves are concerned," said Arun Kejriwal, director of research firm KRIS, pointing to the galloping food inflation.
"If we have a bad monsoon, the market could really tumble," he added.
The benchmark is up by three-quarters so far in 2009 and on track to post its best yearly gains since 1991, with analysts polled expecting the Sensex to end the year at 17,000 points.
It had posted its worst yearly loss in 2008, when it slumped by more than half.
"Life is not going to be that easy for equity investors next year," said Rajesh Agarwal, director of CD Equisearch.
"You should see the gains this year in the context of the mayhem last year and, therefore, one shouldn't expect the market to rise sharply from this level in the year ahead."
The highest mid-year 2010 forecast had the BSE index scaling new highs and touching 23,000, while five forecasts expect a decline from current levels, with the most pessimistic view expecting the benchmark to decline 40 percent from Wednesday's close to 10,115.
The forecast for the Sensex at the end of 2010 ranged from 10,893 to 24,000.
The BSE index has outperformed Japan's Nikkei, which is up 14 percent so far this year, and a 50 percent rise in Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index, but is just behind an 80 percent rise in China's Shanghai Composite Index.
The BSE index trades at 21.8 times forward earnings, in line with the benchmark in South Korea, but higher than Indonesia which trades at a multiple of 15.8 .
China's Shanghai Composite Index traded at 24.1 times earnings while Brazil and Russia trade at about 17.6 and 13.3 respectively.
The benchmark Sensex is likely to rise nearly 9 percent by mid-2010 and by more than 12 percent by the end of next year from Wednesday's close of 16,912.77, the poll has found.
The median forecast of around 20 brokerages and investment houses, taken over the past week, has the benchmark rising to 18,375 points by the middle of 2010, and will likely end the year at 19,000.
"The Indian economy will do well. Corporate earnings will do well," said Jigar Shah, senior vice-president of Kim Eng Securities, who saw the Sensex rising to 21,000 by mid-2010.
The Sensex hit a record high of 21,206.77 in Jan. 2008.
Other analysts were worried that the withdrawal of stimulus measures and the impact of this year's weak monsoon could temper the stock market's strength.
"A lot depends on monsoon. We are on the edge as far as food reserves are concerned," said Arun Kejriwal, director of research firm KRIS, pointing to the galloping food inflation.
"If we have a bad monsoon, the market could really tumble," he added.
The benchmark is up by three-quarters so far in 2009 and on track to post its best yearly gains since 1991, with analysts polled expecting the Sensex to end the year at 17,000 points.
It had posted its worst yearly loss in 2008, when it slumped by more than half.
"Life is not going to be that easy for equity investors next year," said Rajesh Agarwal, director of CD Equisearch.
"You should see the gains this year in the context of the mayhem last year and, therefore, one shouldn't expect the market to rise sharply from this level in the year ahead."
The highest mid-year 2010 forecast had the BSE index scaling new highs and touching 23,000, while five forecasts expect a decline from current levels, with the most pessimistic view expecting the benchmark to decline 40 percent from Wednesday's close to 10,115.
The forecast for the Sensex at the end of 2010 ranged from 10,893 to 24,000.
The BSE index has outperformed Japan's Nikkei, which is up 14 percent so far this year, and a 50 percent rise in Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index, but is just behind an 80 percent rise in China's Shanghai Composite Index.
The BSE index trades at 21.8 times forward earnings, in line with the benchmark in South Korea, but higher than Indonesia which trades at a multiple of 15.8 .
China's Shanghai Composite Index traded at 24.1 times earnings while Brazil and Russia trade at about 17.6 and 13.3 respectively.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Market update...
Indian markets ended Friday below the dotted line on profit booking witnessed in frontliners. Domestic bourses were unable to sustain the opening gains due to a hasty reaction to October IIP data. The US Dow, however closed Friday 65 points up, on positive news on the retail sales front.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Sensex makes remarkable recovery, regains 17K
The Sensex opened in the red at 16,772, mirroring negative global cues. Follow-up selling saw the index slip to a low of 16,636 - down 150 points from the previous close.
However, fresh buying in mid-noon trades saw the index jump into the positive zone. Cues from European markets helped the markets rebound. The buying momentum was so strong that the index rallied past the 17,000-mark to a high of 17,042 - up 406 points from the day's low.
The Sensex finally ended at 17,021, up 236 points. Reliance Industries contributed the maximum, (47 points) followed by HDFC (24 points) and SBI (21 points).
The NSE Nifty ended at 5,052, up 64 points.
Among the sectoral indices, barring consumer durables all the index ended in the positive. The Bankex index led the upmove, up 2% at 10,253. It was followed by oil & gas and maetal indices, up 1.5% each.
The consumer durables on the other hand was down 1% at 3,484.
INDEX MOVERS...
ACC soared 4.5% at Rs 766 and Hindalco advanced 3.5% to Rs 134. Jaiprakash Associates, Tata Steel, HDFC, Mahindra & Mahindra and SBI added over 2.5% each to Rs 233, Rs 551, Rs 2,819, Rs 1,040 and Rs 2,336, respectively.
DLF, HDFC Bank, Reliance, Grasim, TCS, Sun Pharma, Sterlite and ITC increased 1.5-2.5% each.
...AND THE SHAKERS
Bharti Airtel on the other hand was among the top loser down 1.5% at Rs 289. Reliance Infrastrcuture, Maruti, BHEL and Tata Power were some of the other marginal losers on the BSE.
The market breadth tunred positive at close - out of 2,787 shares traded, 1,462 advanced, 1,226 declined on the BSE.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS
HDIL topped the value chart on the BSE with a turnover of Rs 210.48 crore. It was followed by Suzlon (Rs 207.14 crore), JSW Steel (Rs 196.98 crore), SBI (Rs 180.15 crore) and Reliance (Rs 158.13 crore).
Cals Refineries led the volume chart with trades of 50.87 million shares. It was followed by Suzlon (28.16 million), Unitech (13.04 million), Dena Bank (9.46 million) and Mahindra Satyam (8.85 million) shares on the BSE
However, fresh buying in mid-noon trades saw the index jump into the positive zone. Cues from European markets helped the markets rebound. The buying momentum was so strong that the index rallied past the 17,000-mark to a high of 17,042 - up 406 points from the day's low.
The Sensex finally ended at 17,021, up 236 points. Reliance Industries contributed the maximum, (47 points) followed by HDFC (24 points) and SBI (21 points).
The NSE Nifty ended at 5,052, up 64 points.
Among the sectoral indices, barring consumer durables all the index ended in the positive. The Bankex index led the upmove, up 2% at 10,253. It was followed by oil & gas and maetal indices, up 1.5% each.
The consumer durables on the other hand was down 1% at 3,484.
INDEX MOVERS...
ACC soared 4.5% at Rs 766 and Hindalco advanced 3.5% to Rs 134. Jaiprakash Associates, Tata Steel, HDFC, Mahindra & Mahindra and SBI added over 2.5% each to Rs 233, Rs 551, Rs 2,819, Rs 1,040 and Rs 2,336, respectively.
DLF, HDFC Bank, Reliance, Grasim, TCS, Sun Pharma, Sterlite and ITC increased 1.5-2.5% each.
...AND THE SHAKERS
Bharti Airtel on the other hand was among the top loser down 1.5% at Rs 289. Reliance Infrastrcuture, Maruti, BHEL and Tata Power were some of the other marginal losers on the BSE.
The market breadth tunred positive at close - out of 2,787 shares traded, 1,462 advanced, 1,226 declined on the BSE.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS
HDIL topped the value chart on the BSE with a turnover of Rs 210.48 crore. It was followed by Suzlon (Rs 207.14 crore), JSW Steel (Rs 196.98 crore), SBI (Rs 180.15 crore) and Reliance (Rs 158.13 crore).
Cals Refineries led the volume chart with trades of 50.87 million shares. It was followed by Suzlon (28.16 million), Unitech (13.04 million), Dena Bank (9.46 million) and Mahindra Satyam (8.85 million) shares on the BSE
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
FIIs net buy Rs 412cr, DIIs net sell Rs 257cr
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers of Rs 412.13 crore (provisional) today, according to data released by BSE.
While FIIs made gross purchases of Rs 2,597.45 crore, gross sales totalled Rs 2,185.32 crore.
Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net sellers of Rs 256.73 crore today. While DIIs made gross purchases of Rs 1,091.23 crore, gross sales totalled Rs 1,347.96 crore.
FIIs were also net buyers of Rs 593.70 crore on Tuesday, November 17, according to data released by Sebi today. While FIIs made gross purchases of Rs 2,379.40 crore, gross sales totalled Rs 1,785.60 crore.
Mutual funds (MFs) were net sellers of Rs 308.40 crore on Tuesday. MFs made purchases of Rs 458.70 crore and sales of Rs 767.10 crore.
While FIIs made gross purchases of Rs 2,597.45 crore, gross sales totalled Rs 2,185.32 crore.
Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net sellers of Rs 256.73 crore today. While DIIs made gross purchases of Rs 1,091.23 crore, gross sales totalled Rs 1,347.96 crore.
FIIs were also net buyers of Rs 593.70 crore on Tuesday, November 17, according to data released by Sebi today. While FIIs made gross purchases of Rs 2,379.40 crore, gross sales totalled Rs 1,785.60 crore.
Mutual funds (MFs) were net sellers of Rs 308.40 crore on Tuesday. MFs made purchases of Rs 458.70 crore and sales of Rs 767.10 crore.
Friday, November 13, 2009
Sensex ignores global cues, gains 1%
After an initial slide, the Sensex turned volatile on the back of weak cues from Asian markets. The index then gained strength and touched a high of 16,910 - up 243 points from the day's low of 16,667.
The Sensex finally ended with a gain of 153 points (1%) at 16,849.
Asian markets ended flat with the Nikkei slipping 34 points. US markets had also edged lower on energy shares.
The Centre for Monitoring Indian Economies' (CMIE) upgraded view of India's GDP (from 6% to 6.2%) helped the NSE Nifty to cross the 5,000 mark again. However, the index slipped from the day's high to end at 4,999 - up 46 points.
The BSE market breadth turned neutral towards the end. Out of 2,827 stocks traded 1,378 advanced while 1,349 declined.
All indices ened in the green, barring realty and consumer durables. The BSE metal, IT and auto indices were up 1.5% each. The oil & gas index added 1% in trades today.
INDEX MOVERS...
Hero Honda was the best performer and surged 4% to Rs 1,579. Maruti Suzuki also pushed up 4% to Rs 1,480.
IT stocks were the biggest contributors with Infosys gaining 1.5% to Rs 2,359 and TCS moving up 2.5% at Rs 670. Wipro also edged up 1.2% to Rs 633.
ONGC added 3% to Rs 1,184 on hopes of a rise in gas prices by the government. Index heavy-weight, ICICI Bank advanced 1.6% to Rs 909.
Other gainers in the market today included Tata Steel, Hindustan Unilever, Hindalco, Reliance Infastructure and Grasim.
...AND THE SHAKERS
Jaiprakash Associates was the big loser in the benchmark today. The stock slid 2% to Rs 232.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS...
Mahindra Satyam topped the value chart with a turnover of Rs 521.03 crore on the BSE. It was followed by Reliance (149.12 crore), DLF (Rs 144.20 crore), JSW Steel (Rs 122.24 crore) and SBI (Rs 119.86 crore).
Mahindra Satyam also leads the volume chart with trades of 46.50 million shares. It is followed by Cals Refineries (16.10 million), Wire & Wireless India (15.50 million), Suzlon Energy (12.76 million) and Unitech (9.19 million) shares on the BSE.
The Sensex finally ended with a gain of 153 points (1%) at 16,849.
Asian markets ended flat with the Nikkei slipping 34 points. US markets had also edged lower on energy shares.
The Centre for Monitoring Indian Economies' (CMIE) upgraded view of India's GDP (from 6% to 6.2%) helped the NSE Nifty to cross the 5,000 mark again. However, the index slipped from the day's high to end at 4,999 - up 46 points.
The BSE market breadth turned neutral towards the end. Out of 2,827 stocks traded 1,378 advanced while 1,349 declined.
All indices ened in the green, barring realty and consumer durables. The BSE metal, IT and auto indices were up 1.5% each. The oil & gas index added 1% in trades today.
INDEX MOVERS...
Hero Honda was the best performer and surged 4% to Rs 1,579. Maruti Suzuki also pushed up 4% to Rs 1,480.
IT stocks were the biggest contributors with Infosys gaining 1.5% to Rs 2,359 and TCS moving up 2.5% at Rs 670. Wipro also edged up 1.2% to Rs 633.
ONGC added 3% to Rs 1,184 on hopes of a rise in gas prices by the government. Index heavy-weight, ICICI Bank advanced 1.6% to Rs 909.
Other gainers in the market today included Tata Steel, Hindustan Unilever, Hindalco, Reliance Infastructure and Grasim.
...AND THE SHAKERS
Jaiprakash Associates was the big loser in the benchmark today. The stock slid 2% to Rs 232.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS...
Mahindra Satyam topped the value chart with a turnover of Rs 521.03 crore on the BSE. It was followed by Reliance (149.12 crore), DLF (Rs 144.20 crore), JSW Steel (Rs 122.24 crore) and SBI (Rs 119.86 crore).
Mahindra Satyam also leads the volume chart with trades of 46.50 million shares. It is followed by Cals Refineries (16.10 million), Wire & Wireless India (15.50 million), Suzlon Energy (12.76 million) and Unitech (9.19 million) shares on the BSE.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Markets ignore IIP data, end in red
The markets opened on a flat note today and slipped into red almost immediately. Strong IIP numbers helped the index rebound into the green to touch a high of 16,897. The market, thereafter, turned volatile on the back of global cues, ignoring the earlier gains.
Industrial growth continued its upward march with factory production rising 9.1 per cent in September against 6 per cent in the same period last year.
However, profit taking in the late-noon session saw the index slumping once again into the red and tumble to a low of 16,605 - down 292 points from the day's high.
The Sensex recovered marginally towards the close and ended off the day's low at 16,696 - down 154 points.
The Nifty ended down 51 points at 4,953 - slipping once again below the 5,000 mark which it had crossed yesterday.
The market breadth was marginally negative. Out of 2,806 stocks traded 1,516 declined while 1,201 advanced.
INDEX SHAKERS...
Banking and metal stocks were the major draggers, accounting for more than half the loss of the Sensex.
ICICI Bank and SBI together were responsible for a loss of over 70 points in the benchmark index. The stocks dropped 3.4% each to Rs 895 and Rs 2,296, respectively. HDFC Bank slipped 1% to Rs 1,715.
Metal stocks were the other big loser. Tata Steel and Sterlite dropped 2.5% each to Rs 512 and Rs 837, respectively. Hindalco was down 2% at Rs 129.
DLF declined 3.5% to Rs 371. HDFC, Jaiprakash Associates, Maruti Suzuki, reliance Infrastructure and ITC shed 1-2% each.
...AND THE MOVERS
IT stocks were the only major gainers in the market today following a string of acquisitions by the major companies. Wipro and TCS gained 1.5% at Rs 625 and Rs 654, respectively. Infosys was flat at Rs 2,323.
Reliance Communications advanced 2% to Rs 175.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS...
Indiabulls Realestate topped the value chart on the BSE with a turnover of Rs 1,648.30 crore, followed by Educomp Solutions (Rs 225.78 crore), DLF (Rs 211.65 crore), Reliance (Rs 185.92 crore) and HDIL (Rs 163.62 crore).
The volume chart was led by Indiabulls Real Estate with trades of over 68 million shares, followed by Suzlon (20.15 million), Mahindra Satyam (13.28 million), First Source (11.74 million) and Unitech (10.72 million).
Industrial growth continued its upward march with factory production rising 9.1 per cent in September against 6 per cent in the same period last year.
However, profit taking in the late-noon session saw the index slumping once again into the red and tumble to a low of 16,605 - down 292 points from the day's high.
The Sensex recovered marginally towards the close and ended off the day's low at 16,696 - down 154 points.
The Nifty ended down 51 points at 4,953 - slipping once again below the 5,000 mark which it had crossed yesterday.
The market breadth was marginally negative. Out of 2,806 stocks traded 1,516 declined while 1,201 advanced.
INDEX SHAKERS...
Banking and metal stocks were the major draggers, accounting for more than half the loss of the Sensex.
ICICI Bank and SBI together were responsible for a loss of over 70 points in the benchmark index. The stocks dropped 3.4% each to Rs 895 and Rs 2,296, respectively. HDFC Bank slipped 1% to Rs 1,715.
Metal stocks were the other big loser. Tata Steel and Sterlite dropped 2.5% each to Rs 512 and Rs 837, respectively. Hindalco was down 2% at Rs 129.
DLF declined 3.5% to Rs 371. HDFC, Jaiprakash Associates, Maruti Suzuki, reliance Infrastructure and ITC shed 1-2% each.
...AND THE MOVERS
IT stocks were the only major gainers in the market today following a string of acquisitions by the major companies. Wipro and TCS gained 1.5% at Rs 625 and Rs 654, respectively. Infosys was flat at Rs 2,323.
Reliance Communications advanced 2% to Rs 175.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS...
Indiabulls Realestate topped the value chart on the BSE with a turnover of Rs 1,648.30 crore, followed by Educomp Solutions (Rs 225.78 crore), DLF (Rs 211.65 crore), Reliance (Rs 185.92 crore) and HDIL (Rs 163.62 crore).
The volume chart was led by Indiabulls Real Estate with trades of over 68 million shares, followed by Suzlon (20.15 million), Mahindra Satyam (13.28 million), First Source (11.74 million) and Unitech (10.72 million).
Monday, November 9, 2009
World stock markets get G-20 boost...
World stock markets rose today after the Group of 20 leading rich and developing countries agreed to maintain their stimulus measures in the wake of weak U.S. employment figures.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Wkly Tech Analysis: Nifty may move in 4,640-4,900 band
In a week marked by high volatility, markets corrected sharply only to bounce back with greater strength. Although, markets have bounced back sharply, chances of a full recovery look remote currently. Going forward, one needs to watch the 15,530-15,640 zone for the Sensex as crucial for the current upmove to remain intact. As and when it comes below this level, the index is likely to test its long-term support of 14,800.
The BSE benchmark index tumbled to a low of 15,331 at the start of the week. Thereafter, the index rallied to a high of 16,284 — a sharp recovery of 953 points. It finally ended the week with a gain of 262 points at 16,158.
Among the index stocks, Bharti Airtel zoomed 9.5 per cent to Rs 320, and Jaiprakash Associates soared 8.5 per cent to Rs 228. ICICI Bank, Tata Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti and Sterlite were the other major gainers. On the other hand, Tata Power slipped over 5 per cent to Rs 1,343. ACC, Hindustan Unilever, ITC and Hero Honda were the other prominent losers.
The near-term support and resistance for the index is at 15,900 and 16,500, respectively. Positive news flow on the disinvestment and economic front is likely to act as boosters. However, the global cues will continue to have a dominant effect on markets in the short term. The NSE Nifty moved in a range of 298 points, from a low of 4,539, the index surged to a high of 4,836, before settling with a gain of 84 points at 4,796.
The Nifty is likely to find considerable support around 4,640 and resistance around 4,900. Technically, the short-term trend is still bearish as the index hovers below its short-term (20-day) and mid-term (50-day) moving averages which are currently at 4,885 and 4,928, respectively.
The Nifty’s low of 4,539 last week seems to be a perfect support on the monthly and yearly charts. Hence, the probability of the index breaking slipping this level may become slim once the index firms up above the 4,900 level. 4,525 is the crucial support for the Nifty on the monthly and yearly chart, after which the index may drop to the 3,900 level.
The BSE benchmark index tumbled to a low of 15,331 at the start of the week. Thereafter, the index rallied to a high of 16,284 — a sharp recovery of 953 points. It finally ended the week with a gain of 262 points at 16,158.
Among the index stocks, Bharti Airtel zoomed 9.5 per cent to Rs 320, and Jaiprakash Associates soared 8.5 per cent to Rs 228. ICICI Bank, Tata Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti and Sterlite were the other major gainers. On the other hand, Tata Power slipped over 5 per cent to Rs 1,343. ACC, Hindustan Unilever, ITC and Hero Honda were the other prominent losers.
The near-term support and resistance for the index is at 15,900 and 16,500, respectively. Positive news flow on the disinvestment and economic front is likely to act as boosters. However, the global cues will continue to have a dominant effect on markets in the short term. The NSE Nifty moved in a range of 298 points, from a low of 4,539, the index surged to a high of 4,836, before settling with a gain of 84 points at 4,796.
The Nifty is likely to find considerable support around 4,640 and resistance around 4,900. Technically, the short-term trend is still bearish as the index hovers below its short-term (20-day) and mid-term (50-day) moving averages which are currently at 4,885 and 4,928, respectively.
The Nifty’s low of 4,539 last week seems to be a perfect support on the monthly and yearly charts. Hence, the probability of the index breaking slipping this level may become slim once the index firms up above the 4,900 level. 4,525 is the crucial support for the Nifty on the monthly and yearly chart, after which the index may drop to the 3,900 level.
Stock Market Rebound Boosts Warren Buffet's Berkshire
Berkshire Hathaway's third-quarter earnings tripled with help from rising stock markets. Profit jumped to $3.24 billion, and revenue rose 7.1% to $29.9 billion.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Markets recover with a vengeance...
After being halted in their tracks in the past two weeks, the bulls of the Indian stock markets came back with a vengeance.
The Nifty ended the day well above the 4,700 mark and the Sensex closed just shy of the 16,000 mark, with the realty, metal and IT stocks leading the way. In the process, the markets more than made up for the previous day's losses. The Sensex ended at 15,912, stronger by 507 points or 3% and the Nifty ended at 4711, up 147 points
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had allayed fears of curbing capital inflows. The Asian bourses did well. Moreover, the European markets are trading firm and the Dow futures are also exhibiting strength, ahead of the Fed's policy statement scheduled later in the day.
Reliance alone catapulted the Sensex by more than 113 points. Infosys contributed 64 points and ICICI was responsible for a 60-points appreciation on the benchmark.
The stocks in the limelight were Jaiprakash Associates (stronger by 9% at Rs 212), Hindalco (higher by 9% at Rs 119) and DLF (up 8% at Rs 365). Sterlite gained 6% at Rs 770, Reliance added 5% at Rs 1840 and Tata Steel put on 5% at Rs 1,920.
Sun Pharma, Grasim and Tata Power were laggards, shedding up to 1% at Rs 1,375, Rs 2,167 and Rs 1,307 respectively.
The market breadth was strong. Out of 2778 stocks traded on the BSE there were 1770 advancing stocks as against 950 declines.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS
State Bank of India topped the value charts with a turnover of Rs 202.38 crore, followed by Reliance (Rs 196.96 crore), Suzlon (Rs 183.03 crore), Tata Steel (Rs 174.20 crore) and Educomp (Rs 170.16 crore).
Suzlon led the volume charts with trades of 32.70 million shares, followed by Unitech (17.94 million), Reliance Natural Resources (10.59 million), Ispat (8.07 million) and Indiabulls Power (8.06 million).
The Nifty ended the day well above the 4,700 mark and the Sensex closed just shy of the 16,000 mark, with the realty, metal and IT stocks leading the way. In the process, the markets more than made up for the previous day's losses. The Sensex ended at 15,912, stronger by 507 points or 3% and the Nifty ended at 4711, up 147 points
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had allayed fears of curbing capital inflows. The Asian bourses did well. Moreover, the European markets are trading firm and the Dow futures are also exhibiting strength, ahead of the Fed's policy statement scheduled later in the day.
Reliance alone catapulted the Sensex by more than 113 points. Infosys contributed 64 points and ICICI was responsible for a 60-points appreciation on the benchmark.
The stocks in the limelight were Jaiprakash Associates (stronger by 9% at Rs 212), Hindalco (higher by 9% at Rs 119) and DLF (up 8% at Rs 365). Sterlite gained 6% at Rs 770, Reliance added 5% at Rs 1840 and Tata Steel put on 5% at Rs 1,920.
Sun Pharma, Grasim and Tata Power were laggards, shedding up to 1% at Rs 1,375, Rs 2,167 and Rs 1,307 respectively.
The market breadth was strong. Out of 2778 stocks traded on the BSE there were 1770 advancing stocks as against 950 declines.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS
State Bank of India topped the value charts with a turnover of Rs 202.38 crore, followed by Reliance (Rs 196.96 crore), Suzlon (Rs 183.03 crore), Tata Steel (Rs 174.20 crore) and Educomp (Rs 170.16 crore).
Suzlon led the volume charts with trades of 32.70 million shares, followed by Unitech (17.94 million), Reliance Natural Resources (10.59 million), Ispat (8.07 million) and Indiabulls Power (8.06 million).
Thursday, October 29, 2009
US economy grows in 3Q, signals end of recession
US economy grows again in 3rd quarter, best showing in 2 years signals end of recession
The U.S. economy grew at a 3.5 percent pace in the third quarter, the best showing in two years, fueled by government-supported spending on cars and homes. It's the strongest signal yet that the economy has entered a new, though fragile, phase of recovery and that the worst recession since the 1930s has ended.
Going forward, many analysts expect the pace of the budding recovery to be plodding due to rising unemployment and continuing difficulties by both consumers and businesses to secure loans.
"This welcome milestone is just another step, and we still have a long road to travel until the economy is fully recovered," said Christina Romer, President Barack Obama's chief economist. "It will take sustained, robust ... growth to bring the unemployment rate down substantially. Such a decline in unemployment is, of course, what we are all working to achieve."
The much-awaited turnaround reported Thursday by the Commerce Department ended the streak of four straight quarters of contracting economic activity, the first time that's happened on records dating to 1947.
It also marked the first increase since the spring of 2008, when the economy experienced a short-lived uptick in growth.
On Wall Street, the news lifted stocks. The Dow Jones industrials gained nearly 110 points in midday trading and broader indices also rose.
The third-quarter's performance -- the strongest since right before the country fell into recession in December 2007 -- was slightly better than the 3.3 percent growth rate economists expected.
Armed with cash from government support programs, consumers led the rebound in the third quarter, snapping up cars and homes.
Consumer spending on big-ticket manufactured goods soared at an annualized rate of 22.3 percent in the third quarter, the most since the end of 2001. The jump largely reflected car purchases spurred by the government's "Cash for Clunkers" program that offered a rebate of up to $4,500 to buy new cars and trade in old gas guzzlers.
The housing market also turned a corner in the summer. Spending on housing projects jumped at an annualized pace of 23.4 percent, the largest jump since 1986. It was the first time since the end of 2005 that spending on housing was positive. Purchases of home furnishings and appliances also added to economic growth.
The government's $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers supported the housing rebound. Congress is considering extending the credit, which expires on Nov. 30.
The U.S. economy grew at a 3.5 percent pace in the third quarter, the best showing in two years, fueled by government-supported spending on cars and homes. It's the strongest signal yet that the economy has entered a new, though fragile, phase of recovery and that the worst recession since the 1930s has ended.
Going forward, many analysts expect the pace of the budding recovery to be plodding due to rising unemployment and continuing difficulties by both consumers and businesses to secure loans.
"This welcome milestone is just another step, and we still have a long road to travel until the economy is fully recovered," said Christina Romer, President Barack Obama's chief economist. "It will take sustained, robust ... growth to bring the unemployment rate down substantially. Such a decline in unemployment is, of course, what we are all working to achieve."
The much-awaited turnaround reported Thursday by the Commerce Department ended the streak of four straight quarters of contracting economic activity, the first time that's happened on records dating to 1947.
It also marked the first increase since the spring of 2008, when the economy experienced a short-lived uptick in growth.
On Wall Street, the news lifted stocks. The Dow Jones industrials gained nearly 110 points in midday trading and broader indices also rose.
The third-quarter's performance -- the strongest since right before the country fell into recession in December 2007 -- was slightly better than the 3.3 percent growth rate economists expected.
Armed with cash from government support programs, consumers led the rebound in the third quarter, snapping up cars and homes.
Consumer spending on big-ticket manufactured goods soared at an annualized rate of 22.3 percent in the third quarter, the most since the end of 2001. The jump largely reflected car purchases spurred by the government's "Cash for Clunkers" program that offered a rebate of up to $4,500 to buy new cars and trade in old gas guzzlers.
The housing market also turned a corner in the summer. Spending on housing projects jumped at an annualized pace of 23.4 percent, the largest jump since 1986. It was the first time since the end of 2005 that spending on housing was positive. Purchases of home furnishings and appliances also added to economic growth.
The government's $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers supported the housing rebound. Congress is considering extending the credit, which expires on Nov. 30.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Markets end flat as heavyweights disappoint...
After yesterday's over 200 points fall, the Sensex opened on an absolutely flat note at 16,796.
Strong global cues gave a fillip to the BSE index and the Sensex soared 217 points to a high of 17,007. However, significant selling pressure in India's most valuable company, Reliance, coupled with capital goods majors - BHEL and Larsen & Toubro - dragged the market down to a low of 16,765 - down 242 points. The Sensex finally ended with a marginal gain of 21 points at 16,811.
The Nifty ended flat at 4,997 - up eight points.
The market breadth was almost neutral. Out of 2,851 shares traded 1,414 advanced while 1,327 declined.
INDEX SHAKERS...
Sensex heavy-weight, Reliance dropped over 4% to Rs 2,047 - which resulted to a 95 points loss for the Sensex. The stock slipped after its partner's Hardy Oil announced plans to abandon one of its well from the KG basin field. According to reports, Hardy Oil stock tumbled around 36%, while the company held 10% stake in the said well, the balance stake is held by Reliance. On its part, however, Reliance clarified that work is on on the said field, and further clarifications will be done later.
Grasim shed 3% to Rs 2,150. Larsen & Toubro slipped for the second day after its Q2 results. The stock dipped 2.3% to Rs 1,571.
Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Bharti Airtel, BHEL, Reliance Infrastructure, Hero Honda and Reliance Communications were the other index losers.
...AND THE MOVERS
FMCG major, ITC, jumped 5% to Rs 260 on better-than-expected Q2 numbers. Mahindra & Mahindra and Maruti Suzuki added over 2% each to Rs 926 and Rs 1,517, respectively.
IT stocks held on to gains. Infosys, TCS and Wipro moved up 2% each to Rs 2,260, Rs 641 and Rs 589, respectively.
Banking stocks like ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and SBI contributed to the index's upmove through the day. ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank advanced 1.5% each while SBI was up 1.2%
Strong global cues gave a fillip to the BSE index and the Sensex soared 217 points to a high of 17,007. However, significant selling pressure in India's most valuable company, Reliance, coupled with capital goods majors - BHEL and Larsen & Toubro - dragged the market down to a low of 16,765 - down 242 points. The Sensex finally ended with a marginal gain of 21 points at 16,811.
The Nifty ended flat at 4,997 - up eight points.
The market breadth was almost neutral. Out of 2,851 shares traded 1,414 advanced while 1,327 declined.
INDEX SHAKERS...
Sensex heavy-weight, Reliance dropped over 4% to Rs 2,047 - which resulted to a 95 points loss for the Sensex. The stock slipped after its partner's Hardy Oil announced plans to abandon one of its well from the KG basin field. According to reports, Hardy Oil stock tumbled around 36%, while the company held 10% stake in the said well, the balance stake is held by Reliance. On its part, however, Reliance clarified that work is on on the said field, and further clarifications will be done later.
Grasim shed 3% to Rs 2,150. Larsen & Toubro slipped for the second day after its Q2 results. The stock dipped 2.3% to Rs 1,571.
Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Bharti Airtel, BHEL, Reliance Infrastructure, Hero Honda and Reliance Communications were the other index losers.
...AND THE MOVERS
FMCG major, ITC, jumped 5% to Rs 260 on better-than-expected Q2 numbers. Mahindra & Mahindra and Maruti Suzuki added over 2% each to Rs 926 and Rs 1,517, respectively.
IT stocks held on to gains. Infosys, TCS and Wipro moved up 2% each to Rs 2,260, Rs 641 and Rs 589, respectively.
Banking stocks like ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and SBI contributed to the index's upmove through the day. ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank advanced 1.5% each while SBI was up 1.2%
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Leading US economic indicators rise again in Sept.
Leading US economic indicators rise for 6th straight month in Sept., point to growth next year
A private forecast of US economic activity rose for the sixth straight month in September, a sign the economy will keep growing next year.
The Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators rose 1 percent last month after a 0.4 percent gain in August. Wall Street economists expected an increase of 0.8 percent last month, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.
Economists expect the economy grew about 3 percent in the third quarter after falling for a record four straight quarters. But many wonder if that pace can continue in the current quarter and next year as unemployment rises and consumers remain hesitant to spend.
The Conference Board index's six-month growth rate through September was the strongest since 1983, but joblessness was weighing on the recovery.
A private forecast of US economic activity rose for the sixth straight month in September, a sign the economy will keep growing next year.
The Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators rose 1 percent last month after a 0.4 percent gain in August. Wall Street economists expected an increase of 0.8 percent last month, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.
Economists expect the economy grew about 3 percent in the third quarter after falling for a record four straight quarters. But many wonder if that pace can continue in the current quarter and next year as unemployment rises and consumers remain hesitant to spend.
The Conference Board index's six-month growth rate through September was the strongest since 1983, but joblessness was weighing on the recovery.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
US Corporate Results...
Morgan Stanley profit ends losing streak
Eli Lilly posts 3Q profit ahead of predictions
Boeing posts $1.6BM loss for 3Q on plane charges
Continental loses $18 million in third quarter
Wells Fargo 3Q profit rises to $3.2 billion
Eli Lilly posts 3Q profit ahead of predictions
Boeing posts $1.6BM loss for 3Q on plane charges
Continental loses $18 million in third quarter
Wells Fargo 3Q profit rises to $3.2 billion
Friday, October 9, 2009
Infosys profit falls 0.9 pct but outlook improves
Infosys Technologies Ltd. reported a slight decrease in quarterly profit today but raised its revenue forecast -- a sign the worst may be over for India's software services industry after being hard hit by the global downturn.
Infosys, India's second largest outsourcing firm, said net income fell 0.9 percent, to $317.0 million in the quarter ended Sept. 30 based on international accounting standards, beating its own forecast.
Revenues for the period were $1.15 billion, a 5.1 percent decline from the same period a year ago but a 2.9 percent improvement from the prior quarter.
"The business climate has improved," said Infosys chief executive S. Gopalakrishnan. "Clients are now looking to invest in a few strategic initiatives."
Infosys said it expects revenues for the fiscal year to be $4.6 billion to $4.62 billion, about 1 percent less than last year, but a more optimistic forecast than it made in July.
The company said it has boosted its cash holdings to $2.8 billion, added 35 new clients and 1,548 employees during the quarter.
Infosys, India's second largest outsourcing firm, said net income fell 0.9 percent, to $317.0 million in the quarter ended Sept. 30 based on international accounting standards, beating its own forecast.
Revenues for the period were $1.15 billion, a 5.1 percent decline from the same period a year ago but a 2.9 percent improvement from the prior quarter.
"The business climate has improved," said Infosys chief executive S. Gopalakrishnan. "Clients are now looking to invest in a few strategic initiatives."
Infosys said it expects revenues for the fiscal year to be $4.6 billion to $4.62 billion, about 1 percent less than last year, but a more optimistic forecast than it made in July.
The company said it has boosted its cash holdings to $2.8 billion, added 35 new clients and 1,548 employees during the quarter.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
RIL consolidated FY09 net at Rs 15,296 cr
Mukesh Ambani group firm Reliance Industries (RIL) today reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 15,296 crore for the year ended March 31, 2009.
The company had registered a net profit of Rs 15,324 crore (from ordinary activities) in the FY08, the company stated in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
The announcement of audited financial results for 2008-09 came late as the merger of Reliance Petroleum with RIL was awaiting regulatory and court approvals.
The figures include those of Reliance Petroleum (RPL), which amalgamated with the company with effect from April 1, 2008 and are therefore, not comparable with those of previous year, the company said in the filing.
The net turnover of the company stood at Rs 1,51,224 crore for the year ended March 31, 2009, whereas it was Rs 1,37,147 crore a year-ago.
RIL has also proposed a dividend of Rs 13 per fully paid-up equity shares of Rs 10 each aggregating to Rs 2,219 crore, including the dividend distribution tax, the filing added.
The board has considered dividend on the shares issued to the shareholders erstwhile RPL as well.
The RIL board also approved a bonus issue of one share for each share held in the company, subject to the approval of the shareholders.
Further, the provision for current tax for the year ended March 31, 2009, includes provision for Fringe Benefit Tax of Rs 57 crore.
On standalone basis, RIL's audited net profit stood at Rs 15,309 crore for 2008-09, whereas it was Rs 19,458 crore in the previous year.
The company's standalone net turnover was Rs 1,41,847 crore in the last fiscal, while it was Rs 1,33,443 crore in 2007-08.
During the year, the company announced a voluntary separation scheme for the employees of Patalganga unit and about 430 employees had accepted the VSS.
The company said in the filing that it has recognised Rs 370 crore towards liabilities on account of corporate guarantees issues on behalf of a subsidiary, being an exceptional item.
In the previous year, exceptional item of Rs 4,733 crore represent gains primarily arising out of transactions concerning Reliance Petroleum shares.
Shares of RIL closed down 1.57 per cent at Rs 2,099 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
The company had registered a net profit of Rs 15,324 crore (from ordinary activities) in the FY08, the company stated in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
The announcement of audited financial results for 2008-09 came late as the merger of Reliance Petroleum with RIL was awaiting regulatory and court approvals.
The figures include those of Reliance Petroleum (RPL), which amalgamated with the company with effect from April 1, 2008 and are therefore, not comparable with those of previous year, the company said in the filing.
The net turnover of the company stood at Rs 1,51,224 crore for the year ended March 31, 2009, whereas it was Rs 1,37,147 crore a year-ago.
RIL has also proposed a dividend of Rs 13 per fully paid-up equity shares of Rs 10 each aggregating to Rs 2,219 crore, including the dividend distribution tax, the filing added.
The board has considered dividend on the shares issued to the shareholders erstwhile RPL as well.
The RIL board also approved a bonus issue of one share for each share held in the company, subject to the approval of the shareholders.
Further, the provision for current tax for the year ended March 31, 2009, includes provision for Fringe Benefit Tax of Rs 57 crore.
On standalone basis, RIL's audited net profit stood at Rs 15,309 crore for 2008-09, whereas it was Rs 19,458 crore in the previous year.
The company's standalone net turnover was Rs 1,41,847 crore in the last fiscal, while it was Rs 1,33,443 crore in 2007-08.
During the year, the company announced a voluntary separation scheme for the employees of Patalganga unit and about 430 employees had accepted the VSS.
The company said in the filing that it has recognised Rs 370 crore towards liabilities on account of corporate guarantees issues on behalf of a subsidiary, being an exceptional item.
In the previous year, exceptional item of Rs 4,733 crore represent gains primarily arising out of transactions concerning Reliance Petroleum shares.
Shares of RIL closed down 1.57 per cent at Rs 2,099 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Industry recovers as excise up 22.7% in August...
In a clear sign of the strength of the industrial comeback, excise duty collection for August registered a 22.7 per cent increase over last month, raising the government's hope of meeting the indirect tax mop-up target for the year.
"Industry is clearly showing signs of revival. Excise collection in August is up 22.7 per cent compared to last month... We are hopeful of meeting the target," Chairman of Central Board of Excise and Customs V Sridhar told reporters here.
The growth in excise figures is led by improvement in sectors like sugar that showed an increase of about 16 per cent, petroleum products that grew by about 4 to 5 per cent and cigarettes, Sridhar added on the sidelines of a CII seminar.
The indirect tax collection target of the government is set at about Rs 2.7 lakh crore for 2009-10.
Further, customs duty also slightly improved from the negative of over 30 per cent in July to a minus 28 per cent in August, he said.
Among the three components of indirect tax — customs, excise and service tax — service tax has performed the best, he pointed out.
"Service tax has done the best among the three (central excise, customs and service tax). There is a negative 1.3 per cent growth in service tax in August," Sridhar added.
The tax cuts made by the government, to help industries tide over the slowdown, had hit the exchequer both in terms of direct and indirect taxes, while customs, excise and service tax witnessed negative growth in the past four months.
The government's indirect tax kitty during the first four months of this fiscal, April-July was down 28 per cent at about 63,623 crore compared to Rs 88,395 crore last year same period.
Customs, among the indirect tax components had witnessed the maximum decline of about 36 per cent at Rs 24,324 crore in the April-July period.
"Industry is clearly showing signs of revival. Excise collection in August is up 22.7 per cent compared to last month... We are hopeful of meeting the target," Chairman of Central Board of Excise and Customs V Sridhar told reporters here.
The growth in excise figures is led by improvement in sectors like sugar that showed an increase of about 16 per cent, petroleum products that grew by about 4 to 5 per cent and cigarettes, Sridhar added on the sidelines of a CII seminar.
The indirect tax collection target of the government is set at about Rs 2.7 lakh crore for 2009-10.
Further, customs duty also slightly improved from the negative of over 30 per cent in July to a minus 28 per cent in August, he said.
Among the three components of indirect tax — customs, excise and service tax — service tax has performed the best, he pointed out.
"Service tax has done the best among the three (central excise, customs and service tax). There is a negative 1.3 per cent growth in service tax in August," Sridhar added.
The tax cuts made by the government, to help industries tide over the slowdown, had hit the exchequer both in terms of direct and indirect taxes, while customs, excise and service tax witnessed negative growth in the past four months.
The government's indirect tax kitty during the first four months of this fiscal, April-July was down 28 per cent at about 63,623 crore compared to Rs 88,395 crore last year same period.
Customs, among the indirect tax components had witnessed the maximum decline of about 36 per cent at Rs 24,324 crore in the April-July period.
G-20 leaders reach historic pact on global recovery
Taking on board the concerns of India and other countries, leaders of the G-20 countries have decided to continue the stimulus package to quicken global economic recovery.
The leaders from US, UK, France, China and others reached a historic agreement, to put the group at the centre of their efforts to build a roadmap for durable recovery, avoiding the financial fragilities that led to the crisis.
"Today, leaders endorsed the G-20 as the premier forum for their international economic cooperation. This decision brings to the table the countries needed to build a stronger, more balanced global economy, reform the financial system, and lift the lives of the poorest," the White House said in a statement after US President Barack Obama hosted a dinner for the heads of government that included Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Amid demands by some European government heads that an exit policy should be made to end the stimulus package agreed in London, the draft declaration of the summit is believed to have stressed the need for continuance of the booster dose notwithstanding green shoots of recovery seen in some countries.
At the London Summit in April, the G-20 leaders agreed to pump in $1.1 billion, to lift the global economy hit by last year's financial crisis that had triggered the collapse of many leading financial institutions.
The draft declaration is understood to reflect India’s view that it was too early to adopt an exit strategy from the stimulus package, but left it to individual countries to adopt measures after some time, Indian officials involved in the hectic negotiations said.
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, was India's pointsman in the negotiations as Singh met world leaders. At the dinner last night, the Prime Minister and his wife, Gursharan Kaur, were warmly received by Obama and the First Lady, Mitchelle.
After an affectionate handshake, the Prime Minister had some consultations with him for a couple of minutes before they got into deliberations in the environment-friendly Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, called the Green Heart of Pittsburgh.
The White House statement said dramatic changes in the world economy have not always been reflected in the global architecture for economic cooperation.
"This all started to change today. The G-20 leaders reached a historic agreement to put the G-20 at the centre of their efforts to work together to build a durable recovery while avoiding the financial fragilities that led to the crisis," it said.
Establishing the G-20 as the Premier Global Economic Forum, Obama called on the world's leaders to reform global economic institutions to meet the needs of an interconnected world economy.
"Today, leaders endorsed the G-20 as the premier forum for their international economic cooperation. This decision brings to the table the countries needed to build a stronger, more balanced global economy, reform the financial system, and lift the lives of the poorest," the White House said.
This builds on the decision made in April in London to expand the Financial Stability Board to include all G-20 countries and to add all the G-20 members to the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information.
"The Financial Stability Board is central to our efforts to develop and implement sweeping reforms to transform the system of global regulation.
The Global Forum is the primary vehicle in the G-20's effort to promote greater tax transparency," it said.
The draft communiqué is also believed to be strongly worded against any protectionism in trade, investment, services and capital flows and attempts to yield to such temptation in the face of crisis.
The WTO report on the issue has said that countries have broadly avoided the tendency to resort to protectionism but occasional violations have also been seen in the last six months. The US Government's decision to impose hefty duty on import of Chinese tyres is being cited by opponents of protectionism.
The Prime Minister has already said that the Summit should send a strong message against protectionism in all its forms and that it should not be business as usual for countries because the global economy is yet to come out of the woods.
The declaration also endorses India’s stand for reforms of international financial institutions like the World Bank and International Monetary Fund to reflect ground realities by giving greater say in their affairs for emerging economies.
The US Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner, said a substantial additional progress in Pittsburgh over what the summit did in London is to add in effect a fourth pillar to the architecture of cooperation established after the Second World War.
The US Treasury Secretary said that to the IMF, GATT and WTO, the fourth pillar Financial Stability Board has been added.
"And that forum again brings together central banks, finance ministers, supervisors of banks, market regulators, like the SEC and the CFTC, the accounting standard setters — brings them together and tries to forge consensus on standards, so we can have, again, common standards applied globally," Geithner said.
He underlined that the G-20 leaders want to have very strong standards to limit the risk that compensation practices in the world's largest institutions encourage.
"So we have laid out a really far-reaching set of pretty detailed standards to underscore that commitment. But we've also made it clear that we are going to move each country to put in place the mix of regulations, laws, supervisory measures, that are necessary to give those standards force," he said.
"We're going to measure progress against those standards, report on progress, and we're going to let an independent agency — in this case, the Financial Stability Board — assess progress against those standards," Geithner underlined.
The draft declaration also favours broad political consensus towards successful conclusion of the climate change summit.
The leaders from US, UK, France, China and others reached a historic agreement, to put the group at the centre of their efforts to build a roadmap for durable recovery, avoiding the financial fragilities that led to the crisis.
"Today, leaders endorsed the G-20 as the premier forum for their international economic cooperation. This decision brings to the table the countries needed to build a stronger, more balanced global economy, reform the financial system, and lift the lives of the poorest," the White House said in a statement after US President Barack Obama hosted a dinner for the heads of government that included Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Amid demands by some European government heads that an exit policy should be made to end the stimulus package agreed in London, the draft declaration of the summit is believed to have stressed the need for continuance of the booster dose notwithstanding green shoots of recovery seen in some countries.
At the London Summit in April, the G-20 leaders agreed to pump in $1.1 billion, to lift the global economy hit by last year's financial crisis that had triggered the collapse of many leading financial institutions.
The draft declaration is understood to reflect India’s view that it was too early to adopt an exit strategy from the stimulus package, but left it to individual countries to adopt measures after some time, Indian officials involved in the hectic negotiations said.
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, was India's pointsman in the negotiations as Singh met world leaders. At the dinner last night, the Prime Minister and his wife, Gursharan Kaur, were warmly received by Obama and the First Lady, Mitchelle.
After an affectionate handshake, the Prime Minister had some consultations with him for a couple of minutes before they got into deliberations in the environment-friendly Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, called the Green Heart of Pittsburgh.
The White House statement said dramatic changes in the world economy have not always been reflected in the global architecture for economic cooperation.
"This all started to change today. The G-20 leaders reached a historic agreement to put the G-20 at the centre of their efforts to work together to build a durable recovery while avoiding the financial fragilities that led to the crisis," it said.
Establishing the G-20 as the Premier Global Economic Forum, Obama called on the world's leaders to reform global economic institutions to meet the needs of an interconnected world economy.
"Today, leaders endorsed the G-20 as the premier forum for their international economic cooperation. This decision brings to the table the countries needed to build a stronger, more balanced global economy, reform the financial system, and lift the lives of the poorest," the White House said.
This builds on the decision made in April in London to expand the Financial Stability Board to include all G-20 countries and to add all the G-20 members to the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information.
"The Financial Stability Board is central to our efforts to develop and implement sweeping reforms to transform the system of global regulation.
The Global Forum is the primary vehicle in the G-20's effort to promote greater tax transparency," it said.
The draft communiqué is also believed to be strongly worded against any protectionism in trade, investment, services and capital flows and attempts to yield to such temptation in the face of crisis.
The WTO report on the issue has said that countries have broadly avoided the tendency to resort to protectionism but occasional violations have also been seen in the last six months. The US Government's decision to impose hefty duty on import of Chinese tyres is being cited by opponents of protectionism.
The Prime Minister has already said that the Summit should send a strong message against protectionism in all its forms and that it should not be business as usual for countries because the global economy is yet to come out of the woods.
The declaration also endorses India’s stand for reforms of international financial institutions like the World Bank and International Monetary Fund to reflect ground realities by giving greater say in their affairs for emerging economies.
The US Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner, said a substantial additional progress in Pittsburgh over what the summit did in London is to add in effect a fourth pillar to the architecture of cooperation established after the Second World War.
The US Treasury Secretary said that to the IMF, GATT and WTO, the fourth pillar Financial Stability Board has been added.
"And that forum again brings together central banks, finance ministers, supervisors of banks, market regulators, like the SEC and the CFTC, the accounting standard setters — brings them together and tries to forge consensus on standards, so we can have, again, common standards applied globally," Geithner said.
He underlined that the G-20 leaders want to have very strong standards to limit the risk that compensation practices in the world's largest institutions encourage.
"So we have laid out a really far-reaching set of pretty detailed standards to underscore that commitment. But we've also made it clear that we are going to move each country to put in place the mix of regulations, laws, supervisory measures, that are necessary to give those standards force," he said.
"We're going to measure progress against those standards, report on progress, and we're going to let an independent agency — in this case, the Financial Stability Board — assess progress against those standards," Geithner underlined.
The draft declaration also favours broad political consensus towards successful conclusion of the climate change summit.
News snapshot
# Dr Reddy's hits new 52-wk high on ADR surge
# Kingfisher rallies on GDR, rights issue plans
# M&M gains on hopes of upping stake in Swaraj
# Cipla to raise Rs 676 cr via QIP issue
# Kingfisher rallies on GDR, rights issue plans
# M&M gains on hopes of upping stake in Swaraj
# Cipla to raise Rs 676 cr via QIP issue
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Sensex closes in the red on profit-booking
The Sensex this morning opened with a positive gap of 19 points at 16,905. It soon slipped in the red and traded in a narrow range till late afternoon on either side of yesterday's closing line. The last one hour of trade, however, saw about of profit-booking. The Sensex finally ended at 16,717, down 170 points. What was more disappointing was the Nifty's close below the 5000 level within a day of having surpassed the psychological mark.
The BSE midcap index closed at 6,141, down 167 points and the BSE Small-cap index shut shop at 7,350, down 102 points.
The BSE IT index dipped 1.72% to 4,563. The TECk index shed 1.98% to 3,238 points and the realty index weakened by 2.31% to 4,415.
The markets breadth was negative. Out of 2,864 stocks traded, 1,001 advanced and 1,784 declined.
INDEX MOVERS...
HDFC Bank surged 1.45% to Rs 1,560, Sterlite gained 1.09% to Rs 769 and Sun Pharma rose 0.58% to Rs 1,212.
...AND LOSERS
Jaiprakash Associates sunk 6.34% to Rs 235, Bharti Airtel dropped 3.43% to Rs 414 and Reliance Communications declined 2.9% to Rs 308. Mahindra & Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever and Reliance Infrastructure were down between 1 and 2% each.
MOST ACTIVE COUNTERS
Jaiprakash Assoicates led the combined value chart on the BSE and the NSE with a total turnover of Rs 2,030 crore. It was followed by Suzlon (Rs 1,284 crore), Reliance (Rs 844 crore), DLF (Rs 675 crore) and Tata Steel (Rs 512 crore).
Suzlon topped the combined volume chart with trades of around 132.69 million shares followed by Jaiprakash Associates (85.33 million), Unitech (44.18 million), Ispat Industries (38.01 million), IFCI (37.50 million).
The BSE midcap index closed at 6,141, down 167 points and the BSE Small-cap index shut shop at 7,350, down 102 points.
The BSE IT index dipped 1.72% to 4,563. The TECk index shed 1.98% to 3,238 points and the realty index weakened by 2.31% to 4,415.
The markets breadth was negative. Out of 2,864 stocks traded, 1,001 advanced and 1,784 declined.
INDEX MOVERS...
HDFC Bank surged 1.45% to Rs 1,560, Sterlite gained 1.09% to Rs 769 and Sun Pharma rose 0.58% to Rs 1,212.
...AND LOSERS
Jaiprakash Associates sunk 6.34% to Rs 235, Bharti Airtel dropped 3.43% to Rs 414 and Reliance Communications declined 2.9% to Rs 308. Mahindra & Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever and Reliance Infrastructure were down between 1 and 2% each.
MOST ACTIVE COUNTERS
Jaiprakash Assoicates led the combined value chart on the BSE and the NSE with a total turnover of Rs 2,030 crore. It was followed by Suzlon (Rs 1,284 crore), Reliance (Rs 844 crore), DLF (Rs 675 crore) and Tata Steel (Rs 512 crore).
Suzlon topped the combined volume chart with trades of around 132.69 million shares followed by Jaiprakash Associates (85.33 million), Unitech (44.18 million), Ispat Industries (38.01 million), IFCI (37.50 million).
Sunday, September 20, 2009
FII inflows to cross $10 bn-mark this month: Analysts
Foreign investment in the Indian stock markets may cross $10 billion-mark by the end of this month as a hefty $9.8 billion (Rs 47,674 crore) have already been poured into the bourses by overseas entities so far this year, analysts feel.
"FII inflows in the Indian equity market would continue in the coming days and it may cross $10 billion level by September-end," Anand Rathi Financial Services Director & Head of Research Tarun Sisodia.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) are the net buyer of shares worth Rs 47,674 crore so far in this year, according to the data available with the market regulator or Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi).
The infusion of money by overseas investors in shares is a part of their portfolio management in various emerging markets and India is part of that strategy, Sisodia, who is based in Mumbai, said.
So for in this month, foreign investors have infused over Rs 7,400 crore ($1.5 billion), increasing their total net investment, since FIIs were allowed in India, to over Rs 2.78 lakh crore ($65 billion), as per Sebi data.
"FII investment in the local markets may cross $10 billion mark by end of this week. As everything is bullish and picture of Indian stock market is very rosy," Delhi-based SMC Global's Vice President Rajesh Jain said.
Significantly, so far in 2009, the Bombay Stock Exchange's benchmark index Sensex gained over 73 per cent. Nifty, the benchmark index of National Stock Exchange has also advanced fairly so far this year.
In long term, the rise in benchmark index would continue, Sisodia added.
"The Indian market has seen a huge inflow of funds from overseas investors and crossing $10 billion level is not tough in the current month," Ashika Stock Brokers Research Head Paras Bothra said.
After pulling out a hefty Rs 52,986 crore ($11.9 billion) from the local stock markets last year, FIIs remained net seller of shares for the first two month of current year.
However, with the sign of revival of economies, the trend turned positive during March and marketmen feel that the year will close with huge inflows.
"FII inflows in the Indian equity market would continue in the coming days and it may cross $10 billion level by September-end," Anand Rathi Financial Services Director & Head of Research Tarun Sisodia.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) are the net buyer of shares worth Rs 47,674 crore so far in this year, according to the data available with the market regulator or Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi).
The infusion of money by overseas investors in shares is a part of their portfolio management in various emerging markets and India is part of that strategy, Sisodia, who is based in Mumbai, said.
So for in this month, foreign investors have infused over Rs 7,400 crore ($1.5 billion), increasing their total net investment, since FIIs were allowed in India, to over Rs 2.78 lakh crore ($65 billion), as per Sebi data.
"FII investment in the local markets may cross $10 billion mark by end of this week. As everything is bullish and picture of Indian stock market is very rosy," Delhi-based SMC Global's Vice President Rajesh Jain said.
Significantly, so far in 2009, the Bombay Stock Exchange's benchmark index Sensex gained over 73 per cent. Nifty, the benchmark index of National Stock Exchange has also advanced fairly so far this year.
In long term, the rise in benchmark index would continue, Sisodia added.
"The Indian market has seen a huge inflow of funds from overseas investors and crossing $10 billion level is not tough in the current month," Ashika Stock Brokers Research Head Paras Bothra said.
After pulling out a hefty Rs 52,986 crore ($11.9 billion) from the local stock markets last year, FIIs remained net seller of shares for the first two month of current year.
However, with the sign of revival of economies, the trend turned positive during March and marketmen feel that the year will close with huge inflows.
Top 8 cos add Rs 23,000 cr last week
As many as eight out of the top 10 most valued companies added over Rs 23,000 crore to their market capitalisation in the last week.
However, oil major Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and telecom giant Bharti Airtel witnessed erosion in their market cap during the week.
The country's most valued firm, Reliance Industries (RIL), gained the most adding Rs 6,169.57 crore to its market cap at Rs 3,43,127.27 crore for the week ended September 19.
RIL had a market valuation at Rs 3,36,957.7 crore for the week ended September 12.
Meanwhile, both ONGC and Airtel together lost Rs 7,688.37 crore in their market valuation.
The market cap of ONGC stood at Rs 2,46,119.77 crore while that of Airtel was seen at Rs 1,57,967.53 crore at the end of the week.
The market cap of trading major MMTC rose by Rs 4,965.25 crore to Rs 1,74,705.25 crore and power major NTPC added Rs 3,339.42 crore taking its total market valuation to Rs 1,72,453.8 crore.
The country's largest iron ore producer, NMDC contributed Rs 693.83 crore to its market cap taking its total market valuation to Rs 1,43,561.79 crore.
IT bellwether Infosys Technologies and public sector lender State Bank of India (SBI) added Rs 232.09 crore and Rs 5,742.49 crore, respectively to their market cap.
The total market cap of Infosys Technologies stood at Rs 1,30,087.49 crore and that of SBI at Rs 1,27,563.26 crore.
Outsourcing firm, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) climbed to the ninth slot from the tenth after adding Rs 2,201.85 crore to its market valuation, while power equipment-maker Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL) slipped to the tenth position even after adding Rs 2,201.85 crore to its market cap.
At the end of the week the total market cap of TCS stood at Rs 1,11,736.55 crore and BHEL at Rs 1,11,015.79 crore.
Apart from the top-10 coveted firms, two private sector lenders, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank, together added Rs 1,689.07 crore to their market cap.
At the end of the week, the total market cap of ICICI Bank stood at Rs 93,783.37 crore and HDFC Bank at Rs 64,610.96 crore.
In the club of top-10 firms, RIL is followed by ONGC (Rs 2,46,119.77 crore), MMTC (Rs 1,74,705.25 crore), NTPC (Rs 1,72,453.8 crore), Bharti Airtel (Rs 1,57,967.53 crore), NMDC (Rs 1,43,561.79 crore), Infosys (Rs 1,30,087.49 crore), SBI (Rs 1,27,563.26 crore), TCS (Rs 111736.55 crore) and BHEL (Rs 1,11,015.79 crore), in that order.
However, oil major Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and telecom giant Bharti Airtel witnessed erosion in their market cap during the week.
The country's most valued firm, Reliance Industries (RIL), gained the most adding Rs 6,169.57 crore to its market cap at Rs 3,43,127.27 crore for the week ended September 19.
RIL had a market valuation at Rs 3,36,957.7 crore for the week ended September 12.
Meanwhile, both ONGC and Airtel together lost Rs 7,688.37 crore in their market valuation.
The market cap of ONGC stood at Rs 2,46,119.77 crore while that of Airtel was seen at Rs 1,57,967.53 crore at the end of the week.
The market cap of trading major MMTC rose by Rs 4,965.25 crore to Rs 1,74,705.25 crore and power major NTPC added Rs 3,339.42 crore taking its total market valuation to Rs 1,72,453.8 crore.
The country's largest iron ore producer, NMDC contributed Rs 693.83 crore to its market cap taking its total market valuation to Rs 1,43,561.79 crore.
IT bellwether Infosys Technologies and public sector lender State Bank of India (SBI) added Rs 232.09 crore and Rs 5,742.49 crore, respectively to their market cap.
The total market cap of Infosys Technologies stood at Rs 1,30,087.49 crore and that of SBI at Rs 1,27,563.26 crore.
Outsourcing firm, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) climbed to the ninth slot from the tenth after adding Rs 2,201.85 crore to its market valuation, while power equipment-maker Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL) slipped to the tenth position even after adding Rs 2,201.85 crore to its market cap.
At the end of the week the total market cap of TCS stood at Rs 1,11,736.55 crore and BHEL at Rs 1,11,015.79 crore.
Apart from the top-10 coveted firms, two private sector lenders, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank, together added Rs 1,689.07 crore to their market cap.
At the end of the week, the total market cap of ICICI Bank stood at Rs 93,783.37 crore and HDFC Bank at Rs 64,610.96 crore.
In the club of top-10 firms, RIL is followed by ONGC (Rs 2,46,119.77 crore), MMTC (Rs 1,74,705.25 crore), NTPC (Rs 1,72,453.8 crore), Bharti Airtel (Rs 1,57,967.53 crore), NMDC (Rs 1,43,561.79 crore), Infosys (Rs 1,30,087.49 crore), SBI (Rs 1,27,563.26 crore), TCS (Rs 111736.55 crore) and BHEL (Rs 1,11,015.79 crore), in that order.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Indian cos in Forbes 'Best Under A Billion' list
Twenty Indian companies have made the cut to enter the list of 200 best companies having sales less than $1 billion in the Asian Pacific region, compiled by business magazine Forbes.
Biotech major Biocon, industrial equipment firm AIA Engineering, IT outsourcing firm Allied Digital Services, software entity AurinoPro Solutions and construction materials company Birla feature in the league of 200 companies.
All have either increased sales and profits over the past 12 months or are forecast to do so in coming quarters. Apparel, media, technology and health care led the way.
"Nearly 40 per cent of the companies are from greater China," Forbes said.
Deepak Fertilisers, drug ingredients provider Divi's Laboratories, gas storage products entity Everest Kanto, pharma firm FDC, publishing entity Geodesic and IT consultancy ICSA have also made it to the list.
Others in the 200 league are IT firms GSS America and Micro Technologies, infrastructure firm IVRCL Infrastructure, security systems entity Nitin Fire Protection, medical devices company Opto Circuits, aluminium foil maker Parekh Aluminex, television broadcaster Raj Television and oil exploration firm Selan Exploration Technology.
The top 200 companies were picked from over 12,000 publicly-listed firms with sales of less than $1 billion in the Asia-Pacific region.
Biotech major Biocon, industrial equipment firm AIA Engineering, IT outsourcing firm Allied Digital Services, software entity AurinoPro Solutions and construction materials company Birla feature in the league of 200 companies.
All have either increased sales and profits over the past 12 months or are forecast to do so in coming quarters. Apparel, media, technology and health care led the way.
"Nearly 40 per cent of the companies are from greater China," Forbes said.
Deepak Fertilisers, drug ingredients provider Divi's Laboratories, gas storage products entity Everest Kanto, pharma firm FDC, publishing entity Geodesic and IT consultancy ICSA have also made it to the list.
Others in the 200 league are IT firms GSS America and Micro Technologies, infrastructure firm IVRCL Infrastructure, security systems entity Nitin Fire Protection, medical devices company Opto Circuits, aluminium foil maker Parekh Aluminex, television broadcaster Raj Television and oil exploration firm Selan Exploration Technology.
The top 200 companies were picked from over 12,000 publicly-listed firms with sales of less than $1 billion in the Asia-Pacific region.
IIP Industrial growth at 6.8% in July
Giving a clear indication of industrial revival, factory output grew by 6.8 per cent in July this year, more than 6.4 per cent in the same month a year ago.
The industrial recovery may offset for slackening of agricultural production being impacted by erratic monsoon and help the economy clock a reasonable growth in the second quarter.
For the first four months of this fiscal, industry grew by 4.6 per cent compared to 5.6 per cent a year ago.
The industrial recovery may offset for slackening of agricultural production being impacted by erratic monsoon and help the economy clock a reasonable growth in the second quarter.
For the first four months of this fiscal, industry grew by 4.6 per cent compared to 5.6 per cent a year ago.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Stocks rise after G-20 say stimulus will stay
European and Asian stocks rose Monday after finance officials from 20 rich and developing countries pledged to keep in place their massive stimulus programs to prop up the global economy.
News of corporate takeover activity, with Cadbury jumping 37.8 percent after rejecting a takeover offer from Kraft, also helped stocks start the week well on a day when Wall Street will be closed for the Labor Day holiday.
Germany's DAX closed up 1.5 percent, to 5,463.51, while Britain's FTSE 100 gained 1.7 percent, to 4,933.18. France's CAC-40 added 1.5 percent, to 3,652.83.
Benchmarks in Japan, Hong Kong and China added about 1 percent or more after Beijing said it would allow greater access to foreign investors.
Investors reacted positively to the weekend announcements from finance officials at the Group of 20 summit in London, which acknowledged some improvements in economic growth but warned recovery was not sustainable without continued help from governments in the form of deficit spending, low interest rates and efforts to expand the money supply.
"It will come as a relief to markets that G-20 central bankers and finance ministers agreed that it was too early to begin withdrawing massive fiscal, monetary and financial support," said Mitul Kotecha, analyst at Calyon.
Markets had been worried that nascent signs of economic recovery would lead countries to unwind their stimulus, but the G-20 dispelled those fears.
News of corporate takeover activity, with Cadbury jumping 37.8 percent after rejecting a takeover offer from Kraft, also helped stocks start the week well on a day when Wall Street will be closed for the Labor Day holiday.
Germany's DAX closed up 1.5 percent, to 5,463.51, while Britain's FTSE 100 gained 1.7 percent, to 4,933.18. France's CAC-40 added 1.5 percent, to 3,652.83.
Benchmarks in Japan, Hong Kong and China added about 1 percent or more after Beijing said it would allow greater access to foreign investors.
Investors reacted positively to the weekend announcements from finance officials at the Group of 20 summit in London, which acknowledged some improvements in economic growth but warned recovery was not sustainable without continued help from governments in the form of deficit spending, low interest rates and efforts to expand the money supply.
"It will come as a relief to markets that G-20 central bankers and finance ministers agreed that it was too early to begin withdrawing massive fiscal, monetary and financial support," said Mitul Kotecha, analyst at Calyon.
Markets had been worried that nascent signs of economic recovery would lead countries to unwind their stimulus, but the G-20 dispelled those fears.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Friday US Market Overview
US buyers continued to push stocks higher in the face of some rather ugly unemployment headlines as strong momentum from the previous session and pent up buying fed a positive bias.
The latest jobs report showed that 216,000 nonfarm payrolls were slashed in August. That marked the lowest job loss tally in one year and wasn't as bad as the 230,000 job losses that economists had come to expect, but the difficulty of finding a job sent the unemployment rate to a 25-year high of 9.7% from 9.4%. The consensus estimate had been pegged at 9.5%.
Though US stocks struggled a bit to set forth on a clear trajectory in the minutes following the report, they benefited from some residual buying interest stemming from the previous session's late squeeze higher. Given that stocks had lost roughly 2.5% in the four sessions leading up to Friday's trade, participants also felt compelled to chase the gains registered in recent weeks.
This session's buying effort came on light trading volume, but that was generally expected going into Memorial Day weekend. Still, a lack of participation is often associated with a lack of conviction among broader-market participants, even though low-volume trade has been a hallmark of the stock market's summer rally. Hardly 1 billion shares traded hands on the NYSE this session, below the 50-day moving average of 1.2 billion shares.
Nonetheless, Friday's session's gains were broad-based as roughly 85% of the companies in the S&P 500 settled with a gain. Seven of the 10 major sectors in the S&P 500 posted gains between 1.3% and 2.0%. Financials (+0.8%), consumer staples (+0.7%), and utilities (+0.3%) were relative laggards.
The score at close of trade:
Dow 9,441.27 + 96.66 (1.03%)
Nasdaq 2,018.78 + 35.58 (1.79%)
S&P 500 1,016.40 + 13.16 (1.31%)
The latest jobs report showed that 216,000 nonfarm payrolls were slashed in August. That marked the lowest job loss tally in one year and wasn't as bad as the 230,000 job losses that economists had come to expect, but the difficulty of finding a job sent the unemployment rate to a 25-year high of 9.7% from 9.4%. The consensus estimate had been pegged at 9.5%.
Though US stocks struggled a bit to set forth on a clear trajectory in the minutes following the report, they benefited from some residual buying interest stemming from the previous session's late squeeze higher. Given that stocks had lost roughly 2.5% in the four sessions leading up to Friday's trade, participants also felt compelled to chase the gains registered in recent weeks.
This session's buying effort came on light trading volume, but that was generally expected going into Memorial Day weekend. Still, a lack of participation is often associated with a lack of conviction among broader-market participants, even though low-volume trade has been a hallmark of the stock market's summer rally. Hardly 1 billion shares traded hands on the NYSE this session, below the 50-day moving average of 1.2 billion shares.
Nonetheless, Friday's session's gains were broad-based as roughly 85% of the companies in the S&P 500 settled with a gain. Seven of the 10 major sectors in the S&P 500 posted gains between 1.3% and 2.0%. Financials (+0.8%), consumer staples (+0.7%), and utilities (+0.3%) were relative laggards.
The score at close of trade:
Dow 9,441.27 + 96.66 (1.03%)
Nasdaq 2,018.78 + 35.58 (1.79%)
S&P 500 1,016.40 + 13.16 (1.31%)
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Moody's revises India growth forecast upwards to 6.4 percent
Global consultancy Moody's, which last week contended that the drought would bring India's growth down to 6.2 percent, today revised its prediction to say the 'stronger-than-expected start' this fiscal spelt a 6.4 percent growth in 2009-10, and 9 percent by 2012-13.
'India's June quarter economic performance surprised slightly on the upside. On a year-ago basis, GDP growth accelerated to 6.1 percent compared to (our) forecast of 5.9 percent,' said Sherman Chan, economist with Moody's Economy.com, the research arm of Moody's.
'The stronger-than-expected start of the fiscal year has prompted Moody's Economy.com to revise India's annual growth forecast from 6.2 percent to 6.4 percent,' Chan added.
'Like China, India has ample long-term growth potential, especially with its large population and vast underdeveloped areas. The need to improve infrastructure will keep overall economic activity buoyant in coming years.'
Last week, Moody's had said GDP growth in 2009 would be 'mildly slower than in 2008', and predicting it would slow to 6.2 percent.
Despite the upward revision of its GDP growth forecast, Moody's warned that the farm output was likely to decline till December, impacting overall GDP growth. 'The robust momentum in manufacturing during recent months may be unsustainable in the near term,' Chan said.
'Policymakers certainly cannot rule out chances of a dip in the September quarter before activity continues with its mild upward trend,' Chan said.
'Public expenditure is expected to slow significantly, offset by private investment, as the government attempts to restore fiscal discipline.'
Nevertheless, she added, India's medium-term prospects were 'rosy', and that GDP growth would accelerate to 7.2 percent next fiscal and further accelerate to touch 9 percent in 2012-2013.
'India's June quarter economic performance surprised slightly on the upside. On a year-ago basis, GDP growth accelerated to 6.1 percent compared to (our) forecast of 5.9 percent,' said Sherman Chan, economist with Moody's Economy.com, the research arm of Moody's.
'The stronger-than-expected start of the fiscal year has prompted Moody's Economy.com to revise India's annual growth forecast from 6.2 percent to 6.4 percent,' Chan added.
'Like China, India has ample long-term growth potential, especially with its large population and vast underdeveloped areas. The need to improve infrastructure will keep overall economic activity buoyant in coming years.'
Last week, Moody's had said GDP growth in 2009 would be 'mildly slower than in 2008', and predicting it would slow to 6.2 percent.
Despite the upward revision of its GDP growth forecast, Moody's warned that the farm output was likely to decline till December, impacting overall GDP growth. 'The robust momentum in manufacturing during recent months may be unsustainable in the near term,' Chan said.
'Policymakers certainly cannot rule out chances of a dip in the September quarter before activity continues with its mild upward trend,' Chan said.
'Public expenditure is expected to slow significantly, offset by private investment, as the government attempts to restore fiscal discipline.'
Nevertheless, she added, India's medium-term prospects were 'rosy', and that GDP growth would accelerate to 7.2 percent next fiscal and further accelerate to touch 9 percent in 2012-2013.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
September sonnet for stocks: A sliding Sensex?
Going by history, the stock market could be in for some troubles as September has been the worst month historically for the bourses, but the analysts are still hopeful that the trend may be reversed this time around.
Moreover, the analysts here believe that September being the worst month of the year in terms of the benchmark index performance is more of a US phenomenon and the Indian market, being structurally different, might not follow the same trend.
According to an analysis of the the average monthly performance over the last 100 years of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the benchmark index of the US market, the month of September has given the worst return with an average decline of 0.96 per cent.
The analysis shows that over the last 100 years, the month of September has recorded decline a majority of 58 times.
In September 2008, the Indian stock market benchmark Sensex fell by 1,704 points or 12 per cent, while DJIA declined by 666 points or six per cent.
Last September also recorded a complete collapse in the investor confidence levels worldwide, as the American banking giant Lehman Brothers went bankrupt and was followed by a series of high profile failures and heightened financial crisis.
Besides, the volatility tends to be the maximum during this month and it has been historically about 10 per cent higher than the previous month in the US stock market, as turbulence and fear grips the market with a bearish phase.
"One should execise caution as September tends to be a weaker month for stock market as history shows that the volatility in the US markets reaches its highest," SMC Global Vice President Rajesh Jain said.
However, others believe that the signs of improving economic growth rate scenario and the build-up in the investors' confidence should ward off the concerns in India.
"Volatility is already there in the market in the past few trading sessions. However, the scenario now is positive as the signs of faster economic growth is fuelling the market forward," Unicon Financial Chief Executive G Nagpal said.
Ashika Stock Brokers Research Head Paras Bothra also noted that at the current levels, instead of going down, there was more probability that the stocks would move up.
"Market has a habit of greeting investors with a surprise. But, there could be huge movement on the indices and volatility would be heightened," he added.
Moreover, the analysts here believe that September being the worst month of the year in terms of the benchmark index performance is more of a US phenomenon and the Indian market, being structurally different, might not follow the same trend.
According to an analysis of the the average monthly performance over the last 100 years of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the benchmark index of the US market, the month of September has given the worst return with an average decline of 0.96 per cent.
The analysis shows that over the last 100 years, the month of September has recorded decline a majority of 58 times.
In September 2008, the Indian stock market benchmark Sensex fell by 1,704 points or 12 per cent, while DJIA declined by 666 points or six per cent.
Last September also recorded a complete collapse in the investor confidence levels worldwide, as the American banking giant Lehman Brothers went bankrupt and was followed by a series of high profile failures and heightened financial crisis.
Besides, the volatility tends to be the maximum during this month and it has been historically about 10 per cent higher than the previous month in the US stock market, as turbulence and fear grips the market with a bearish phase.
"One should execise caution as September tends to be a weaker month for stock market as history shows that the volatility in the US markets reaches its highest," SMC Global Vice President Rajesh Jain said.
However, others believe that the signs of improving economic growth rate scenario and the build-up in the investors' confidence should ward off the concerns in India.
"Volatility is already there in the market in the past few trading sessions. However, the scenario now is positive as the signs of faster economic growth is fuelling the market forward," Unicon Financial Chief Executive G Nagpal said.
Ashika Stock Brokers Research Head Paras Bothra also noted that at the current levels, instead of going down, there was more probability that the stocks would move up.
"Market has a habit of greeting investors with a surprise. But, there could be huge movement on the indices and volatility would be heightened," he added.
Seven of top-10 firms gain Rs 51,000 cr in August
Seven out of the top-10 coveted firms in the country saw their total market capitalisation climb over Rs 51,000 crore in August, while state-run NTPC, MMTC and SBI witnessed value erosion
The country's most valued firm Reliance Industries (RIL) added Rs 17,816 crore to its market-cap so far this month, taking its total valuation to Rs 3,25,838 crore.
As on July 31, RIL had a market-cap of Rs 3,08,022 crore.
Oil firm ONGC and private sector telecom operator Bharti Airtel added Rs 3,144 crore and Rs 9,207 crore, to their respective valuations.
Further, the market valuation of ONGC stood at Rs 2,52,216 crore and Airtel at Rs 1,65,087 crore as on August 29.
Power producer NTPC and trading firm MMTC lost Rs 4,494 crore and Rs 2,401 crore, respectively from their market- cap during the period from July 31 to August 29.
The market valuations of NTPC and MMTC fell to Rs 1,73,278 crore and Rs 1,46,476 crore, respectively.
Mineral major NMDC rose to the fifth slot from sixth after adding Rs 6,462 crore to its market cap, taking its total valuation to Rs 1,48,855 crore during.
The country's largest public sector lender SBI slipped to the ninth position from eighth after losing Rs 2,060 crore from its market cap, while IT bellwether Infosys Technologies added Rs 7,625 crore.
The country's most valued firm Reliance Industries (RIL) added Rs 17,816 crore to its market-cap so far this month, taking its total valuation to Rs 3,25,838 crore.
As on July 31, RIL had a market-cap of Rs 3,08,022 crore.
Oil firm ONGC and private sector telecom operator Bharti Airtel added Rs 3,144 crore and Rs 9,207 crore, to their respective valuations.
Further, the market valuation of ONGC stood at Rs 2,52,216 crore and Airtel at Rs 1,65,087 crore as on August 29.
Power producer NTPC and trading firm MMTC lost Rs 4,494 crore and Rs 2,401 crore, respectively from their market- cap during the period from July 31 to August 29.
The market valuations of NTPC and MMTC fell to Rs 1,73,278 crore and Rs 1,46,476 crore, respectively.
Mineral major NMDC rose to the fifth slot from sixth after adding Rs 6,462 crore to its market cap, taking its total valuation to Rs 1,48,855 crore during.
The country's largest public sector lender SBI slipped to the ninth position from eighth after losing Rs 2,060 crore from its market cap, while IT bellwether Infosys Technologies added Rs 7,625 crore.
UPA-II effect: FIIs infuse Rs 23,000 cr in 100 days
Call it the effect of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government or a hope of a revival for the Indian stock markets, the country has witnessed an inflow of nearly Rs 23,700 crore from overseas investors since the new term of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
An analysis of the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) activity shows that since May 22, the day Prime Minister took oath for a second term to lead the UPA government, FIIs have made a net investment of Rs 23,688.8 crore in the domestic stock markets.
On August 29, the UPA government completed its 100 days in office with a mixed bag of good work on certain fronts while stumbling on several issues.
The inflow during the period (May 22-August 29) accounts for over 65 per cent of the total FII inflow this year so far into the Indian stock markets.
According to the data available with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), so far in 2009 FIIs have made a net investment of Rs 39,179.60 crore.
During the period under review, July witnessed an inflow of Rs 11,066 crore, the highest in a month. In June the inflow was Rs 3,830 crore, while in August it is Rs 3,810 crore.
"FIIs have confidence in the India growth story and have invested at a cheaper level. Now that markets have moved up more participation would be seen as the foreign funds would like to be left out for participating in the rally," SMC Global Vice President Rajesh Jain said.
An analysis of the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) activity shows that since May 22, the day Prime Minister took oath for a second term to lead the UPA government, FIIs have made a net investment of Rs 23,688.8 crore in the domestic stock markets.
On August 29, the UPA government completed its 100 days in office with a mixed bag of good work on certain fronts while stumbling on several issues.
The inflow during the period (May 22-August 29) accounts for over 65 per cent of the total FII inflow this year so far into the Indian stock markets.
According to the data available with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), so far in 2009 FIIs have made a net investment of Rs 39,179.60 crore.
During the period under review, July witnessed an inflow of Rs 11,066 crore, the highest in a month. In June the inflow was Rs 3,830 crore, while in August it is Rs 3,810 crore.
"FIIs have confidence in the India growth story and have invested at a cheaper level. Now that markets have moved up more participation would be seen as the foreign funds would like to be left out for participating in the rally," SMC Global Vice President Rajesh Jain said.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Sensex ends in green despite weak core sector growth
The Sensex rose to a three-week high, led by smart rally in IT stocks on the BSE today, following consumer confidence surge in the US, the largest market for software exporters. The conference board's confidence index climbed to 54.1 in August, its first gain in last three months.
The Sensex today opened with a positive gap of 75 points. The Sensex experienced a brief slippage and touched a low of 15,695, after a report on industrial output was declared. The growth of six core infrastructure industries - petroleum refinery, crude oil, coal, electricity, cement and finished steel,decreased to 1.8% in July, as against 5.1% a year ago, as petroleum refinery output acted as a drag on the sector. However, the prevalent positive sentiment earlier in the day helped the markets to trade in the green for the rest of the day. The Sensex touched an intra-day high of 15,831, up 143 points and finally settled at 15,769, up 81 points.
The NSE Nifty settled at 4,680, up 21 points.
The BSE midcap and smallcap indices outperformed the broader market. The midcap index advanced over 1% to 5,800 and the smallcap index gained nearly 2% to close at 6,878.
The market breadth was positive - out of 2,867 stocks, 1,941 advanced and 853 declined today.
The Sensex today opened with a positive gap of 75 points. The Sensex experienced a brief slippage and touched a low of 15,695, after a report on industrial output was declared. The growth of six core infrastructure industries - petroleum refinery, crude oil, coal, electricity, cement and finished steel,decreased to 1.8% in July, as against 5.1% a year ago, as petroleum refinery output acted as a drag on the sector. However, the prevalent positive sentiment earlier in the day helped the markets to trade in the green for the rest of the day. The Sensex touched an intra-day high of 15,831, up 143 points and finally settled at 15,769, up 81 points.
The NSE Nifty settled at 4,680, up 21 points.
The BSE midcap and smallcap indices outperformed the broader market. The midcap index advanced over 1% to 5,800 and the smallcap index gained nearly 2% to close at 6,878.
The market breadth was positive - out of 2,867 stocks, 1,941 advanced and 853 declined today.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Markets ready for a major move
Following the consolidation last week, the markets look set for a major move this week. However, it is not clear if the major move will be a decisive (breakout or breakdown) one or a both-way one.
Technicals suggest that the markets are likely to first make an up move, followed by a sharper downswing in the coming days. The Sensex is likely to face resistance at 15,670-15,700, above which the index may spike to higher levels backed by significant short-covering by the bears. However, if the index fails to break above the 15,670-15,700 resistance zone, one may see a sharp reversal wherein the index may plunge below the 14,700-level.
Last week, the Sensex, after a dismal start, consolidated around the 14,700 level before recovering partially and settling at 15,241, down 1.1 per cent (171 points). The intra-week range for the index narrowed to 600 points, from around 850 points in the last three weeks.
Among the index stocks, HDFC surged over 5 per cent to Rs 2,432 and BHEL gained 4.5 per cent to Rs 2,298. Maruti, HDFC Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever and Tata Power were the other notable gainers. On the other hand, Tata Motors tumbled over 7 per cent to Rs 433. Reliance Infrastructure and ACC shed 6.5 per cent each. Tata Steel, Reliance, Sterlite, Reliance Communications, Hindalco, DLF, Sun Pharma and Jaiprakash Associates declined 3-5 per cent each.
The NSE Nifty moved in a range of 225 points. The index, after touching a low of 4,353, recovered partially and ended with a loss of 51 points at 4,529.
The Nifty has near resistance around 4,615-4,640, above which the index may make a fresh attempt to break past the 4,700 mark. However, on the downside, a sustained stay below 4,400, could see the index slide up to 4,170.
Technicals suggest that the markets are likely to first make an up move, followed by a sharper downswing in the coming days. The Sensex is likely to face resistance at 15,670-15,700, above which the index may spike to higher levels backed by significant short-covering by the bears. However, if the index fails to break above the 15,670-15,700 resistance zone, one may see a sharp reversal wherein the index may plunge below the 14,700-level.
Last week, the Sensex, after a dismal start, consolidated around the 14,700 level before recovering partially and settling at 15,241, down 1.1 per cent (171 points). The intra-week range for the index narrowed to 600 points, from around 850 points in the last three weeks.
Among the index stocks, HDFC surged over 5 per cent to Rs 2,432 and BHEL gained 4.5 per cent to Rs 2,298. Maruti, HDFC Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever and Tata Power were the other notable gainers. On the other hand, Tata Motors tumbled over 7 per cent to Rs 433. Reliance Infrastructure and ACC shed 6.5 per cent each. Tata Steel, Reliance, Sterlite, Reliance Communications, Hindalco, DLF, Sun Pharma and Jaiprakash Associates declined 3-5 per cent each.
The NSE Nifty moved in a range of 225 points. The index, after touching a low of 4,353, recovered partially and ended with a loss of 51 points at 4,529.
The Nifty has near resistance around 4,615-4,640, above which the index may make a fresh attempt to break past the 4,700 mark. However, on the downside, a sustained stay below 4,400, could see the index slide up to 4,170.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
World stocks up strongly as China bounces back
World stock markets rose strongly today after Chinese shares enjoyed their biggest rally since March, a day after slumping nearly 5 percent and officially entering a bear market.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Bulls fight back, Sensex gains 250pts
After yesterday's debacle, a fall of over 600 points on the Sensex, the index today opened 39 points lower at 14,746 tracking subdued cues from the global markets.
The benchmark index however rebounded into the positive zone but slipped back into the red for a brief while to touch a low of 14,740. Extensive buying in realty, metal and power stocks pulled the index from its lower levels and the index rallied to touch a high of 15,134. The Sensex exhibited volatility and moved in the range of 395 points throughout the day. Strong opening of the European bourses also added to the upmove.
The BSE benchmark finally ended at 15,035, up 250 points or 1.5% from the previous close. The NSE Nifty ended at 4459, up 1.5%.
The market breadth was positive. Out of 2,714 shares traded, 1,733 (64%) advanced, 900 (33%) declined and 81 (3%) were unchanged on the BSE today.
The midcap and the smallcap indices outperformed the broader market. The indices were up 2% each.
All the sectoral indices ended in green. The BSE Capital Goods Index surged around 4% to 12,314. The Realty, metal and Power indices added over 2% each.
Auto, bankex, FMCG, oil & gas, healthcare, consumer durables and IT indices were the other sectoral movers.
INDEX MOVERS...
Hindalco advanced 6% to Rs 106. Jaiprakash Associates and Larsen & Toubro increased over 4.5% each to Rs 212 and Rs 1,477, respectively.
Hindustan Unilever, Tata Steel and HDFC added over 3% each to Rs 258, Rs 451 and Rs 2,321, respectively.
DLF, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, BHEL, HDFC Bank, Reliance Communications, ICICI Bank, Reliance Infrastruture and Maruti were up 2-3% each.
...AND THE SHAKERS
Infosys, Grasim Industries, TCS and Sun Pharma were the marginal losers today, down around 0.5% each.
The benchmark index however rebounded into the positive zone but slipped back into the red for a brief while to touch a low of 14,740. Extensive buying in realty, metal and power stocks pulled the index from its lower levels and the index rallied to touch a high of 15,134. The Sensex exhibited volatility and moved in the range of 395 points throughout the day. Strong opening of the European bourses also added to the upmove.
The BSE benchmark finally ended at 15,035, up 250 points or 1.5% from the previous close. The NSE Nifty ended at 4459, up 1.5%.
The market breadth was positive. Out of 2,714 shares traded, 1,733 (64%) advanced, 900 (33%) declined and 81 (3%) were unchanged on the BSE today.
The midcap and the smallcap indices outperformed the broader market. The indices were up 2% each.
All the sectoral indices ended in green. The BSE Capital Goods Index surged around 4% to 12,314. The Realty, metal and Power indices added over 2% each.
Auto, bankex, FMCG, oil & gas, healthcare, consumer durables and IT indices were the other sectoral movers.
INDEX MOVERS...
Hindalco advanced 6% to Rs 106. Jaiprakash Associates and Larsen & Toubro increased over 4.5% each to Rs 212 and Rs 1,477, respectively.
Hindustan Unilever, Tata Steel and HDFC added over 3% each to Rs 258, Rs 451 and Rs 2,321, respectively.
DLF, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, BHEL, HDFC Bank, Reliance Communications, ICICI Bank, Reliance Infrastruture and Maruti were up 2-3% each.
...AND THE SHAKERS
Infosys, Grasim Industries, TCS and Sun Pharma were the marginal losers today, down around 0.5% each.
Garments maker Provogue India to buy back shares worth Rs. 50 crore at Rs.100 a piece
Garments maker Provogue India has announced that it will buy back shares worth Rs. 50 crore from its shareholders through open market route.
"The directors have approved to repurchase 50 lakh shares at Rs. 100 a piece, aggregating to Rs 50 crore," Provogue India said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
The buy-back is subject to necessary regulatory approvals, the filing added.
"The directors have approved to repurchase 50 lakh shares at Rs. 100 a piece, aggregating to Rs 50 crore," Provogue India said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
The buy-back is subject to necessary regulatory approvals, the filing added.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Riding the bull charge
The recovery in the markets has lead to a slew of new fund offers. Should you invest?
The market turnaround from March 2009 lows on the back of a stable government, improvement in macroeconomic indicators as well as better-than-expected corporate earnings has set the mutual fund cash registers ringing again. Inflows into mutual funds for the month of July were up 24 per cent over the previous month, helping the total AUM exceed Rs 7 lakh crore for the first time in Indian mutual fund history.
While part of it is the money that was withdrawn on account of advance tax payments in June, the incremental addition was largely on account of the upward movement of the markets. Aided by FII inflows in July which grew by more than 3.5 times over June, the Nifty grew by 8 per cent in the same period. The upward movement in the market meant a jump in net inflows into equity funds in July to Rs 4,200 crore which accounts for nearly half of the equity inflows for the 2009 calendar year, estimates rating agency Crisil.
Fund managers say that the risk aversion which had gripped the markets since the last quarter of 2008 seems to have receded with improvements in economic indicators in India as well as in developed markets. While recovery make take two more quarters, fund houses have sensed the uptrend and are piling on new fund offers (NFOs). However, financial advisors suggest that due diligence be done before investment decisions are made. For one, they are advising clients to invest in NFOs falling under new norms which does away with entry loads.
The market turnaround from March 2009 lows on the back of a stable government, improvement in macroeconomic indicators as well as better-than-expected corporate earnings has set the mutual fund cash registers ringing again. Inflows into mutual funds for the month of July were up 24 per cent over the previous month, helping the total AUM exceed Rs 7 lakh crore for the first time in Indian mutual fund history.
While part of it is the money that was withdrawn on account of advance tax payments in June, the incremental addition was largely on account of the upward movement of the markets. Aided by FII inflows in July which grew by more than 3.5 times over June, the Nifty grew by 8 per cent in the same period. The upward movement in the market meant a jump in net inflows into equity funds in July to Rs 4,200 crore which accounts for nearly half of the equity inflows for the 2009 calendar year, estimates rating agency Crisil.
Fund managers say that the risk aversion which had gripped the markets since the last quarter of 2008 seems to have receded with improvements in economic indicators in India as well as in developed markets. While recovery make take two more quarters, fund houses have sensed the uptrend and are piling on new fund offers (NFOs). However, financial advisors suggest that due diligence be done before investment decisions are made. For one, they are advising clients to invest in NFOs falling under new norms which does away with entry loads.
Japan's economy rebounds in 2Q on export growth
Japan's economy breaks free of recession in 2Q on export rebound, grows at 3.7 percent pace
Japan's economy broke free of recession in the second quarter, the government said today, expanding 3.7 percent at an annual pace on a strong rebound in exports and joining Germany, France and other economies in recovering from the global financial crisis.
The recovery in the April-June quarter was driven by robust demand for exports such as video recorders and other electronics goods, said Kingo Toyoda of the Cabinet Office. Shipments to China and other emerging markets were particularly strong. Exports grew 6.3 percent from the previous quarter, the highest growth since the second quarter of 2002.
Government stimulus measures have also helped, such as cash handouts and incentives to buy ecological products -- although economists warned that the impact of such measures may peter out.
Despite the increase in exports, economists said the nascent recovery could quickly run out of steam because domestic demand remains weak. Salaries are falling and the unemployment rate has risen to a six-year high of 5.4 percent as companies such as Toyota Motor Corp. and Sony Corp. have cut thousands of jobs.
During the quarter through June 30, compensation for employees dipped 1.7 percent, the data showed, while consumer spending edged up a tepid 0.8 percent.
"When you look at the numbers, the contrast between external demand and internal demand is as clear as night and day," said Hiroshi Watanabe, economist with Daiwa Institute of Research in Tokyo. "With payments falling, it's really hard to expect individual spending to hold up."
The rebound in the world's second-largest economy came after a steep, yearlong contraction in gross domestic product, including a worst-ever drop in the final quarter of 2008, when the economy shrank at a 13.1 percent pace.
The news from Japan comes amid signs that the global economy may be recovering from its slump. Last week, France and Germany, Europe's two biggest economies, said they resumed growing in the second quarter, while Hong Kong also said it expanded after a yearlong recession.
Japanese stocks fell, though, on concerns about weak U.S. consumer sentiment that could mean bad news for Japan's export-driven economy. The Nikkei 225 was down 2.2 percent at 10,360.25 by midday today.
Economy and fiscal policy minister Yoshimasa Hayashi warned that "risk factors" remain, including high unemployment and sluggish production.
"Production is still at a low level, and worries remain that employment conditions will worsen. So we must watch the downside risks," he said on nationally televised news.
Private capital investment slid 4.3 percent from the previous quarter, while housing investment plunged 9.5 percent, the government said.
Compared to the previous quarter, Japan's GDP expanded 0.9 percent in April-June. If that rate were maintained for a full year, the economy would grow 3.7 percent.
That was better than the 3.0 percent rate projected by the Economic Planning Association, a government-affiliated group of economists.
Also today, the government said in revised data that the economy had contracted 3.2 percent in the fiscal year through March 31, following 1.8 percent growth in the previous fiscal year, ending March 2008.
Japan's economy broke free of recession in the second quarter, the government said today, expanding 3.7 percent at an annual pace on a strong rebound in exports and joining Germany, France and other economies in recovering from the global financial crisis.
The recovery in the April-June quarter was driven by robust demand for exports such as video recorders and other electronics goods, said Kingo Toyoda of the Cabinet Office. Shipments to China and other emerging markets were particularly strong. Exports grew 6.3 percent from the previous quarter, the highest growth since the second quarter of 2002.
Government stimulus measures have also helped, such as cash handouts and incentives to buy ecological products -- although economists warned that the impact of such measures may peter out.
Despite the increase in exports, economists said the nascent recovery could quickly run out of steam because domestic demand remains weak. Salaries are falling and the unemployment rate has risen to a six-year high of 5.4 percent as companies such as Toyota Motor Corp. and Sony Corp. have cut thousands of jobs.
During the quarter through June 30, compensation for employees dipped 1.7 percent, the data showed, while consumer spending edged up a tepid 0.8 percent.
"When you look at the numbers, the contrast between external demand and internal demand is as clear as night and day," said Hiroshi Watanabe, economist with Daiwa Institute of Research in Tokyo. "With payments falling, it's really hard to expect individual spending to hold up."
The rebound in the world's second-largest economy came after a steep, yearlong contraction in gross domestic product, including a worst-ever drop in the final quarter of 2008, when the economy shrank at a 13.1 percent pace.
The news from Japan comes amid signs that the global economy may be recovering from its slump. Last week, France and Germany, Europe's two biggest economies, said they resumed growing in the second quarter, while Hong Kong also said it expanded after a yearlong recession.
Japanese stocks fell, though, on concerns about weak U.S. consumer sentiment that could mean bad news for Japan's export-driven economy. The Nikkei 225 was down 2.2 percent at 10,360.25 by midday today.
Economy and fiscal policy minister Yoshimasa Hayashi warned that "risk factors" remain, including high unemployment and sluggish production.
"Production is still at a low level, and worries remain that employment conditions will worsen. So we must watch the downside risks," he said on nationally televised news.
Private capital investment slid 4.3 percent from the previous quarter, while housing investment plunged 9.5 percent, the government said.
Compared to the previous quarter, Japan's GDP expanded 0.9 percent in April-June. If that rate were maintained for a full year, the economy would grow 3.7 percent.
That was better than the 3.0 percent rate projected by the Economic Planning Association, a government-affiliated group of economists.
Also today, the government said in revised data that the economy had contracted 3.2 percent in the fiscal year through March 31, following 1.8 percent growth in the previous fiscal year, ending March 2008.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
India Inc resumes hiring drive amid recovery signals
In a major relief for jobseekers, India Inc's hiring activities are picking up once again as economic conditions are looking up considerably, experts say.
Most of the Indian companies which had frozen hiring due to the downturn have started to look at fresh recruitments now with indications of an economic recovery becoming visible across the world, according to HR experts.
"Hiring trends are picking up with companies opening up again for fresh recruitments... the days of downturn seem to be over and an upswing has begun.
"The resume posting activity is picking up again as people are testing the waters for changing their jobs," International Management Institute (IMI) Director C S Venkata Ratnam told PTI.
Global consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers Executive Director R Sankar said the hiring conditions were turning for the better even as a long way remains for companies to regain their previous year's levels.
"The job scene has improved but is still to reach the levels of euphoria we were accustomed to in earlier years. We don't see a 'flurry of resumes' but cherry picking of key talent continues to happen," Sankar said.
"Much would depend on the pace of the economic recovery. The green shots are springing up but the poor monsoon is cause for concern," he added.
Venkata Ratnam also said that retail and realty sectors are the ones to pick up strongly in the coming months, while IT sector will continue to suffer as it is not driven by domestic demand.
"In any event, sectors such as FMCG, pharma, telecoms etc which have been relatively less affected by the slowdown will continue to hire, albeit cautiously," Sankar pointed out.
In June, corporate India's hiring activity had surged significantly with recruitment in banking and financial services sector increasing 22 per cent in the month, according to a survey by a job portal.
"The economy has pulled out of the stagnancy in hiring. Although, there is an uptrend in hiring, this may be only indicative of replacement hiring," Info Edge National Head - Marketing and Communications Sumeet Singh said.
The job trends in Indian companies' is in line with their global peers and a recent survey by Deloitte revealed HR executives globally now have new concerns about building up of a 'resume tsunami' which may be ready to hit once the economy turns and employees begin to consider new opportunities.
"Once recovery begins to take hold, business executives and talent leaders can expect a 'resume tsunami' as voluntary turnover rises with leaders and workers with critical skills seeking new opportunities," Deloitte LLP Consulting Principal (Human Capital) Jeff Schwartz said.
Most of the Indian companies which had frozen hiring due to the downturn have started to look at fresh recruitments now with indications of an economic recovery becoming visible across the world, according to HR experts.
"Hiring trends are picking up with companies opening up again for fresh recruitments... the days of downturn seem to be over and an upswing has begun.
"The resume posting activity is picking up again as people are testing the waters for changing their jobs," International Management Institute (IMI) Director C S Venkata Ratnam told PTI.
Global consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers Executive Director R Sankar said the hiring conditions were turning for the better even as a long way remains for companies to regain their previous year's levels.
"The job scene has improved but is still to reach the levels of euphoria we were accustomed to in earlier years. We don't see a 'flurry of resumes' but cherry picking of key talent continues to happen," Sankar said.
"Much would depend on the pace of the economic recovery. The green shots are springing up but the poor monsoon is cause for concern," he added.
Venkata Ratnam also said that retail and realty sectors are the ones to pick up strongly in the coming months, while IT sector will continue to suffer as it is not driven by domestic demand.
"In any event, sectors such as FMCG, pharma, telecoms etc which have been relatively less affected by the slowdown will continue to hire, albeit cautiously," Sankar pointed out.
In June, corporate India's hiring activity had surged significantly with recruitment in banking and financial services sector increasing 22 per cent in the month, according to a survey by a job portal.
"The economy has pulled out of the stagnancy in hiring. Although, there is an uptrend in hiring, this may be only indicative of replacement hiring," Info Edge National Head - Marketing and Communications Sumeet Singh said.
The job trends in Indian companies' is in line with their global peers and a recent survey by Deloitte revealed HR executives globally now have new concerns about building up of a 'resume tsunami' which may be ready to hit once the economy turns and employees begin to consider new opportunities.
"Once recovery begins to take hold, business executives and talent leaders can expect a 'resume tsunami' as voluntary turnover rises with leaders and workers with critical skills seeking new opportunities," Deloitte LLP Consulting Principal (Human Capital) Jeff Schwartz said.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Fresh rally with gap-up opening on the cards
Trading in the Nifty futures and call options suggests that the futures & options traders covered most of their short positions on Friday around the 4,500 level.
The Bloomberg data suggest that almost 60 per cent of the buy-side volumes changed hands around 4,480-4,520 levels. The August futures were traded at a discount of 14 points to the spot during the intraday trade, but closed almost at par with the spot and added an open interest of 704,300 shares.
The put buyers were seen booking profits at the 4,600 and 4,700 strikes as open interest in these puts declined by 733,100 shares, mostly through sell orders. Traders were seen writing the 4,400 and 4,500 puts on expectation of the Nifty getting a strong support at the 4,500 level.
While the Nifty corrected from the day’s high of 4,591 to 4,463, surprisingly the options traders were seen buying 4,700-4,800 strike calls. This meant that we might witness the end of the short-term correction and a fresh rally might emerge on Monday.
The S&P CNX Nifty closed below the 4,500 level on Friday as investors booked profits on concern over below-normal monsoon. The Friday close of 4,481 is also the key trend reversal level. The daily RSI is trading near the mean reversal level of 50, pointing to the significance of support at these levels.
The correction, however, has helped indices move away from the overbought zone to neutral zone. Technically, the Nifty could get support around the 4,400 level, which is also a 50 per cent retracement level of fall between January 8, 2008 and October 27, 2008.
The US and European markets closed in the green, which indicated a gap-up opening in our markets on Monday.
The F&O traders booked profit in several mid-cap stocks such as Ispat Industries, IFCI, GVK Power, Balrampur Chini, Nagarjuna Fertilisers, GMR Infra and IVRCL. A fresh OI build-up of over 500,000 shares each was seen in ITC, Idea Cellular, IDBI Bank, Reliance Petroleum and Suzlon Energy.
The Bloomberg data suggest that almost 60 per cent of the buy-side volumes changed hands around 4,480-4,520 levels. The August futures were traded at a discount of 14 points to the spot during the intraday trade, but closed almost at par with the spot and added an open interest of 704,300 shares.
The put buyers were seen booking profits at the 4,600 and 4,700 strikes as open interest in these puts declined by 733,100 shares, mostly through sell orders. Traders were seen writing the 4,400 and 4,500 puts on expectation of the Nifty getting a strong support at the 4,500 level.
While the Nifty corrected from the day’s high of 4,591 to 4,463, surprisingly the options traders were seen buying 4,700-4,800 strike calls. This meant that we might witness the end of the short-term correction and a fresh rally might emerge on Monday.
The S&P CNX Nifty closed below the 4,500 level on Friday as investors booked profits on concern over below-normal monsoon. The Friday close of 4,481 is also the key trend reversal level. The daily RSI is trading near the mean reversal level of 50, pointing to the significance of support at these levels.
The correction, however, has helped indices move away from the overbought zone to neutral zone. Technically, the Nifty could get support around the 4,400 level, which is also a 50 per cent retracement level of fall between January 8, 2008 and October 27, 2008.
The US and European markets closed in the green, which indicated a gap-up opening in our markets on Monday.
The F&O traders booked profit in several mid-cap stocks such as Ispat Industries, IFCI, GVK Power, Balrampur Chini, Nagarjuna Fertilisers, GMR Infra and IVRCL. A fresh OI build-up of over 500,000 shares each was seen in ITC, Idea Cellular, IDBI Bank, Reliance Petroleum and Suzlon Energy.
IDBI Bank aims to enhance base in SME, retail sectors
IDBI Bank has taken an initiative to strengthen its base in the mid-corporate, SME and retail sectors without compromising its pre-eminent position in the corporate banking business.
"The bank has adopted a strategy of developing a larger client base in the mid-corporate, SME and retail sectors, while nurturing the deep relationships that already exist in the large corporate sector," IDBI Bank Chairman and Managing Director Yogesh Agarwal was quoted as saying in the annual report.
Agarwal said that the strategy aimed at developing more retail base in both assets and liabilities leading to a more diversified balance sheet as well as improvement and sustainability in the net interest income.
"The strategy also focuses on leveraging the bank's experience in project/infrastructure financing to become a larger player in investment banking, yielding higher fee-based income," he said.
In order to boost its non-fund based income, the bank, he said, has adopted aggressive strategies for gaining higher market share in transaction banking activities.
IDBI Bank has already developed a special business model to serve the SMEs, which is considered to be the growth engine of the bank.
"Pursuant to formation of a dedicated vertical for SME customers, the bank has plans to set up 40 City SME Centres (CMCs) out of which 15 have already been set up," Agarwal said.
IDBI Bank installed 149 ATMs during the last fiscal, taking the number to 900 as on March 31, 2009.
"The momentum (of opening ATMs) would continue during the current financial year," Agarwal said.
IDBI had a total business of Rs 2,15,829 crore as on March 31, 2009, comprising Rs 1,12,401 crore of deposits and Rs 1,03,428 crore of advances.
"The bank has adopted a strategy of developing a larger client base in the mid-corporate, SME and retail sectors, while nurturing the deep relationships that already exist in the large corporate sector," IDBI Bank Chairman and Managing Director Yogesh Agarwal was quoted as saying in the annual report.
Agarwal said that the strategy aimed at developing more retail base in both assets and liabilities leading to a more diversified balance sheet as well as improvement and sustainability in the net interest income.
"The strategy also focuses on leveraging the bank's experience in project/infrastructure financing to become a larger player in investment banking, yielding higher fee-based income," he said.
In order to boost its non-fund based income, the bank, he said, has adopted aggressive strategies for gaining higher market share in transaction banking activities.
IDBI Bank has already developed a special business model to serve the SMEs, which is considered to be the growth engine of the bank.
"Pursuant to formation of a dedicated vertical for SME customers, the bank has plans to set up 40 City SME Centres (CMCs) out of which 15 have already been set up," Agarwal said.
IDBI Bank installed 149 ATMs during the last fiscal, taking the number to 900 as on March 31, 2009.
"The momentum (of opening ATMs) would continue during the current financial year," Agarwal said.
IDBI had a total business of Rs 2,15,829 crore as on March 31, 2009, comprising Rs 1,12,401 crore of deposits and Rs 1,03,428 crore of advances.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Surprisingly strong jobs data signal turning point
It's the clearest sign yet the US recession is finally ending: US employers laid off far fewer workers in July, the jobless rate dipped for the first time in 15 months and workers' hours and pay edged upward.
Those are the kind of figures that could give Americans the psychological boost necessary for recovery to take root after the worst recession since World War II.
A net total of 247,000 jobs were lost last month, the fewest in a year and a drastic improvement from the 443,000 that vanished in June.
The Labor Department's report Friday showed that the unemployment rate dropped a notch to 9.4 percent in July, from 9.5 percent the previous month. Together with slight increases in the average workweek and wages, the new figures suggested the economy is in a transition from recession to recovery.
"The worst may be behind us," President Barack Obama declared. "Today, we're pointed in the right direction."
Still, the job market remains shaky. A quarter-million lost jobs are a far cry from the employment growth needed to put the national economy on solid footing.
When the economy is healthy, employers need to add a net total of around 125,000 jobs a month just to keep the unemployment rate stable. And to push the jobless rate down to a more normal 5 percent range, it would take much stronger growth -- at least 200,000 new jobs a month. Economists say it might take until 2013 to drive down the unemployment rate to 5 percent.
Yet the improvements in July could give some businesses the confidence to hire again -- or at least not to lay off more workers. And consumers, less anxious about losing jobs, could respond by spending more freely.
"If people and companies think the worst is behind them -- and it probably is -- their confidence will be restored," said Richard Yamarone, economist at Argus Research. "That confidence can feed on itself."
On Wall Street, the report propelled stocks higher. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 114 points, and other stock averages also gained.
Analysts had been forecasting bleaker employment figures: more job losses and an increase in the unemployment rate to 9.6 percent.
The White House said the president still expects the rate to hit 10 percent this year. So do many economists and the Federal Reserve.
Analysts say companies will keep cutting jobs probably through the rest of this year, though the pace of layoffs should continue to taper off. The beginnings of recovery could actually push the unemployment rate higher, since far more people would be energized to look for work again.
In fact, the main reason the unemployment rate declined last month was not an inspiring one: Hundreds of thousands of people, some discouraged by their failed job searches, left the labor force. The labor force includes only those who are either employed or are looking for work.
If laid-off workers who have given up looking for new jobs or have settled for part-time work are included the unemployment rate would have been 16.3 percent in July. All told, 14.5 million were out of work in July.
Job-seekers are finding it harder to get work because there are so few openings. A record 4.97 million people had been unemployed six months or longer in July. And the average length of unemployment grew to 25.1 weeks, also a record.
For those with jobs, the latest report was more heartening. With companies feeling a bit better about the economy's prospects and their own, employees got to work more hours and saw their paychecks grow.
The average work week rose to 33.1 hours, after having fallen to 33 hours in June, the lowest in records dating to 1964. That increase could signal new hiring later on because companies typically ask their existing staff to work longer hours before they decide to hire more people.
And employers bumped up wages. Average hourly earnings rose to $18.56 in July from $18.53 in June. Average weekly earnings rose to $614.34.
Those gains raised hopes that consumers, whose spending accounts for the single largest slice of economic activity, will spend more in the months ahead. In a cautionary note, the Federal Reserve reported Friday that consumers paid down credit cards and reduced other debt in June for the fifth straight month. For months, rising unemployment, declining home values and reduced stock portfolios have led Americans to spend less.
Those are the kind of figures that could give Americans the psychological boost necessary for recovery to take root after the worst recession since World War II.
A net total of 247,000 jobs were lost last month, the fewest in a year and a drastic improvement from the 443,000 that vanished in June.
The Labor Department's report Friday showed that the unemployment rate dropped a notch to 9.4 percent in July, from 9.5 percent the previous month. Together with slight increases in the average workweek and wages, the new figures suggested the economy is in a transition from recession to recovery.
"The worst may be behind us," President Barack Obama declared. "Today, we're pointed in the right direction."
Still, the job market remains shaky. A quarter-million lost jobs are a far cry from the employment growth needed to put the national economy on solid footing.
When the economy is healthy, employers need to add a net total of around 125,000 jobs a month just to keep the unemployment rate stable. And to push the jobless rate down to a more normal 5 percent range, it would take much stronger growth -- at least 200,000 new jobs a month. Economists say it might take until 2013 to drive down the unemployment rate to 5 percent.
Yet the improvements in July could give some businesses the confidence to hire again -- or at least not to lay off more workers. And consumers, less anxious about losing jobs, could respond by spending more freely.
"If people and companies think the worst is behind them -- and it probably is -- their confidence will be restored," said Richard Yamarone, economist at Argus Research. "That confidence can feed on itself."
On Wall Street, the report propelled stocks higher. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 114 points, and other stock averages also gained.
Analysts had been forecasting bleaker employment figures: more job losses and an increase in the unemployment rate to 9.6 percent.
The White House said the president still expects the rate to hit 10 percent this year. So do many economists and the Federal Reserve.
Analysts say companies will keep cutting jobs probably through the rest of this year, though the pace of layoffs should continue to taper off. The beginnings of recovery could actually push the unemployment rate higher, since far more people would be energized to look for work again.
In fact, the main reason the unemployment rate declined last month was not an inspiring one: Hundreds of thousands of people, some discouraged by their failed job searches, left the labor force. The labor force includes only those who are either employed or are looking for work.
If laid-off workers who have given up looking for new jobs or have settled for part-time work are included the unemployment rate would have been 16.3 percent in July. All told, 14.5 million were out of work in July.
Job-seekers are finding it harder to get work because there are so few openings. A record 4.97 million people had been unemployed six months or longer in July. And the average length of unemployment grew to 25.1 weeks, also a record.
For those with jobs, the latest report was more heartening. With companies feeling a bit better about the economy's prospects and their own, employees got to work more hours and saw their paychecks grow.
The average work week rose to 33.1 hours, after having fallen to 33 hours in June, the lowest in records dating to 1964. That increase could signal new hiring later on because companies typically ask their existing staff to work longer hours before they decide to hire more people.
And employers bumped up wages. Average hourly earnings rose to $18.56 in July from $18.53 in June. Average weekly earnings rose to $614.34.
Those gains raised hopes that consumers, whose spending accounts for the single largest slice of economic activity, will spend more in the months ahead. In a cautionary note, the Federal Reserve reported Friday that consumers paid down credit cards and reduced other debt in June for the fifth straight month. For months, rising unemployment, declining home values and reduced stock portfolios have led Americans to spend less.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
S&P Breaks 1,000 for First Time In '09
The US stock markets are extending their summer rally as August brings more upbeat economic data. Positive reports on manufacturing, housing and banking sent US stocks sharply higher on Monday, hurling the Standard & Poor's 500 index past 1,000 for the first time since early November. The Dow also crossed the 9,200 mark for the first time since late October and the Nasdaq crossed 2,000 for the first time this year.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Sensex at 2009 high, rallies 282pts
The Sensex on Friday recorded a fresh 2009 high on the back of strong earnings, positive global cues and renewed buying interest at the start of the August derivatives series.
The BSE index yesterday opened with a positive gap of 61 points at 15,449. The index surged thereafter to the calendar year's high of 15,733 - up 345 points. Towards the end of the day, the index slipped for a brief while but managed to recover sharply.
The Sensex finally ended the day with a gain of 282 points (2%) at 15,670.
The BSE Oil & Gas and FMCG indices gained 3% each to 2,738 and 9,480, respectively.
The NSE Nifty, meanwhile, ended at 4,636, up 65 points. Ealier in the day the index touched a high of 4,670 - up 99 points.
US markets had closed with big gains on Thursday (the Dow closed slightly higher on Friday also). Asian markets on Friday had closed at their 11-month high.
This has taken the Sensex up 291 points (2%) this week. The Nifty has added 68 points (1.5%) at the same time.
The market breadth today was positive. Out of 2,801 stocks traded, 1,401 advanced while 1,299 declined.
INDEX MOVERS...
Hindalco and Tata Motors have surged 6.5% each to Rs 100 and Rs 422, respectively. ONGC has rallied 6% to Rs 1,165.
SBI has gained 5% at Rs 1,814. Hindustan Unilever added 3% to Rs 291.
Reliance, ITC, Sterlite moved up 3% each. HDFC Bank, HDFC, Infosys, Sun Pharma, Tata Steel, Reliance Infrastructure and BHEL also moved up 1-3% each.
Among the Nifty stocks, Nalco surged 5% to Rs 306. Ambuja Cements and Idea Cellular added 4% each to Rs 109 and Rs 79, respectively.
ABB, Cairn India and Siemens also moved up.
...AND THE SHAKERS
Bharti Airtel traded in red through teh day and finally ended at Rs 411, down 3%. Reliance Communications and Hero Honda dropped 2% each to Rs 276 and Rs 1,606, respectively.
DLF also slipped 1% to Rs 396.
In Nifty, Jindal Steel, BPCL, HCL Technologies, Cipla and PowerGrid Corporation dropped 1-3% each.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS...
Reliance topped the combined value chart with a turnover of Rs 875.43 crore, followed SBI (Rs 864.31 crore), DLF (Rs 776.88 crore), Tata Steel (Rs 752.48 crore) and Suzlon (Rs 660.45 crore).
The combined volume chart was led by Unitech with trades of 81.45 million shares, followed by Suzlon (65.09 million), Mahindra Satyam (52.11 million), Ispat Industries (50.2 million) and IFCI (42.47 million).
The BSE index yesterday opened with a positive gap of 61 points at 15,449. The index surged thereafter to the calendar year's high of 15,733 - up 345 points. Towards the end of the day, the index slipped for a brief while but managed to recover sharply.
The Sensex finally ended the day with a gain of 282 points (2%) at 15,670.
The BSE Oil & Gas and FMCG indices gained 3% each to 2,738 and 9,480, respectively.
The NSE Nifty, meanwhile, ended at 4,636, up 65 points. Ealier in the day the index touched a high of 4,670 - up 99 points.
US markets had closed with big gains on Thursday (the Dow closed slightly higher on Friday also). Asian markets on Friday had closed at their 11-month high.
This has taken the Sensex up 291 points (2%) this week. The Nifty has added 68 points (1.5%) at the same time.
The market breadth today was positive. Out of 2,801 stocks traded, 1,401 advanced while 1,299 declined.
INDEX MOVERS...
Hindalco and Tata Motors have surged 6.5% each to Rs 100 and Rs 422, respectively. ONGC has rallied 6% to Rs 1,165.
SBI has gained 5% at Rs 1,814. Hindustan Unilever added 3% to Rs 291.
Reliance, ITC, Sterlite moved up 3% each. HDFC Bank, HDFC, Infosys, Sun Pharma, Tata Steel, Reliance Infrastructure and BHEL also moved up 1-3% each.
Among the Nifty stocks, Nalco surged 5% to Rs 306. Ambuja Cements and Idea Cellular added 4% each to Rs 109 and Rs 79, respectively.
ABB, Cairn India and Siemens also moved up.
...AND THE SHAKERS
Bharti Airtel traded in red through teh day and finally ended at Rs 411, down 3%. Reliance Communications and Hero Honda dropped 2% each to Rs 276 and Rs 1,606, respectively.
DLF also slipped 1% to Rs 396.
In Nifty, Jindal Steel, BPCL, HCL Technologies, Cipla and PowerGrid Corporation dropped 1-3% each.
VALUE & VOLUME TOPPERS...
Reliance topped the combined value chart with a turnover of Rs 875.43 crore, followed SBI (Rs 864.31 crore), DLF (Rs 776.88 crore), Tata Steel (Rs 752.48 crore) and Suzlon (Rs 660.45 crore).
The combined volume chart was led by Unitech with trades of 81.45 million shares, followed by Suzlon (65.09 million), Mahindra Satyam (52.11 million), Ispat Industries (50.2 million) and IFCI (42.47 million).
Monday, July 27, 2009
Latest US Economic Data...
New US home sales for June came in at an annualized rate of 384,000, which is well above the 352,000 that were widely expected. The latest figures mark the highest sales rate since November, which totaled 390,00. The previous month's data was revised modestly higher to 346,000.
Though the latest rate of new home sales show higher demand for housing, the higher rate of new home sales can complicate the movement of existing home sales and keep inventory up. That could prolong the overall recovery process for US housing.
Though the latest rate of new home sales show higher demand for housing, the higher rate of new home sales can complicate the movement of existing home sales and keep inventory up. That could prolong the overall recovery process for US housing.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Indices may revisit June highs soon...
Courtesy business-standard.com...
Better-than-expected first quarter numbers, steady foreign institutional inflows coupled with positive global cues helped the Indian stock markets post smart gains for the second consecutive week. The Sensex, which gained over 1,200 points in the preceding week, ended the week with a gain of over 600 points.
The Sensex began the week with a bang, up 446 points on Monday. The index, thereafter, consolidated and finally ended with a gain of 634 points at 15,379. In the process, the index moved in a range of 632 points, hit a high of 15,419 and a low of 14,787.
Among the index stocks, DLF and Tata Motors zoomed over 18 per cent to Rs 333 and Rs 316, respectively. Maruti, Jaiprakash Associates, Tata Steel, Hindalco, TCS and Sterlite gained 11-16 per cent.
The Sensex is now well-poised to target its June high of 15,600. Above which, the index may spurt to 15,825, and further up to 16,800 in the next few weeks. On the downside, the index is likely to find support around 15,135-14,990 levels, a break below which could see the index slide to 14,500.
The NSE Nifty moved in a range of 201 points, from a low of 4,378, the index rallied to a high of 4,579, and finally settled with a gain of 194 points at 4,569. The index is moving towards its June high of 4,693 too, above which it may rise to 4,950. On the downside, the index may find support at 4,490-4,445.
The Nifty is currently moving above its all three averages — short-term, mid-term and long-term. However, the mid-term (45 days) average is currently above the short-term (15 days) daily moving average, which at times signifies consolidation or range-bound movement.
Better-than-expected first quarter numbers, steady foreign institutional inflows coupled with positive global cues helped the Indian stock markets post smart gains for the second consecutive week. The Sensex, which gained over 1,200 points in the preceding week, ended the week with a gain of over 600 points.
The Sensex began the week with a bang, up 446 points on Monday. The index, thereafter, consolidated and finally ended with a gain of 634 points at 15,379. In the process, the index moved in a range of 632 points, hit a high of 15,419 and a low of 14,787.
Among the index stocks, DLF and Tata Motors zoomed over 18 per cent to Rs 333 and Rs 316, respectively. Maruti, Jaiprakash Associates, Tata Steel, Hindalco, TCS and Sterlite gained 11-16 per cent.
The Sensex is now well-poised to target its June high of 15,600. Above which, the index may spurt to 15,825, and further up to 16,800 in the next few weeks. On the downside, the index is likely to find support around 15,135-14,990 levels, a break below which could see the index slide to 14,500.
The NSE Nifty moved in a range of 201 points, from a low of 4,378, the index rallied to a high of 4,579, and finally settled with a gain of 194 points at 4,569. The index is moving towards its June high of 4,693 too, above which it may rise to 4,950. On the downside, the index may find support at 4,490-4,445.
The Nifty is currently moving above its all three averages — short-term, mid-term and long-term. However, the mid-term (45 days) average is currently above the short-term (15 days) daily moving average, which at times signifies consolidation or range-bound movement.
S. Korea Economy Snaps Out of Stupor
South Korea's economy roared back to life in the second quarter, its best quarterly performance in more than five years, raising hopes the recovery is sustainable.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
US Market Update
US Markets Weekly Recap - Week ending 24-Jul-09
The US stock markets logged another impressive week as investors cheered better-than-expected earnings reports, with the S&P 500 surging 4.1%, marking an 11% gain since July 10.
The best performing sectors were materials (+8.1%), energy (+5.6%) and utilities (+5.6%).
The week got off to a positive bias on report from The Wall Street Journal that CIT Group (CIT) had reached an agreement with its bondholders to secure $3 billion in rescue financing, which was later confirmed by the struggling lender. Whether CIT will be able to avoid bankruptcy remains to be seen, although this will give the lender some time to explore its options.
With only a handful of economic releases, the main focus this week was the large amount of earnings reports -- 142 S&P 500 companies reported their quarterly results, including 12 Dow components.
Earnings for the most recent quarter largely came out ahead of expectations, with 111 beats, 10 in-line and 21 misses. But the earnings beats were largely due to cost cutting measures, not upside surprises on the top line. Specifically, 72 companies posted revenue that failed to live up to expectations, and 102 reported year-over-year declines in revenue.
For instance, Microsoft met analyst EPS estimates in its fiscal fourth quarter at $0.36, but the software giant's revenue decline of 17% y/y to $13.1 bln was well short of the $14.4 bln consensus. Shares of MSFT fell 4.0% for the week.
The US stock markets logged another impressive week as investors cheered better-than-expected earnings reports, with the S&P 500 surging 4.1%, marking an 11% gain since July 10.
The best performing sectors were materials (+8.1%), energy (+5.6%) and utilities (+5.6%).
The week got off to a positive bias on report from The Wall Street Journal that CIT Group (CIT) had reached an agreement with its bondholders to secure $3 billion in rescue financing, which was later confirmed by the struggling lender. Whether CIT will be able to avoid bankruptcy remains to be seen, although this will give the lender some time to explore its options.
With only a handful of economic releases, the main focus this week was the large amount of earnings reports -- 142 S&P 500 companies reported their quarterly results, including 12 Dow components.
Earnings for the most recent quarter largely came out ahead of expectations, with 111 beats, 10 in-line and 21 misses. But the earnings beats were largely due to cost cutting measures, not upside surprises on the top line. Specifically, 72 companies posted revenue that failed to live up to expectations, and 102 reported year-over-year declines in revenue.
For instance, Microsoft met analyst EPS estimates in its fiscal fourth quarter at $0.36, but the software giant's revenue decline of 17% y/y to $13.1 bln was well short of the $14.4 bln consensus. Shares of MSFT fell 4.0% for the week.
US Markets...
Tech stocks were under pressure for the entire session yesterday and caused the Nasdaq to log its first loss in more than two weeks, but a supportive bid in the broader market emerged to help the Dow and S&P 500 reverse early losses and finish with a modest gains.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
News...
Japan's export fall less severe as recession eases
Japan's exports in June fell by the smallest margin in six months, adding to evidence that global demand is recovering as the recession loosens its grip.
Other news...
# Porsche CEO steps down, making way for VW merger
# Credit Suisse reports 29 percent rise in 2Q profit
# Hyundai Motor Q2 net profit rises 48 percent
# Roche says half-year profit down 29 percent
Japan's exports in June fell by the smallest margin in six months, adding to evidence that global demand is recovering as the recession loosens its grip.
Other news...
# Porsche CEO steps down, making way for VW merger
# Credit Suisse reports 29 percent rise in 2Q profit
# Hyundai Motor Q2 net profit rises 48 percent
# Roche says half-year profit down 29 percent
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Market trends...
US Earnings Uptick Lifts American (And World) Investor Confidence
The first wave of US quarterly corporate earnings reports arrived stronger than expected, soothing investor fears of another economic crisis and helping push the Dow Jones Industrial Average to its strongest weekly gain since March.
The Dow ended the week up 7.3% at 8743.94, taking just five days to recover almost all the 7.4% decline of the previous four weeks, as investors took heart from blowout earnings by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and positive comments from J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Intel Corp.
Sensex Ends up 3.5%; Gains Over 9% In The Immediate Past Week
Positive trade in global markets and heavy institutional buying - mainly by foreign investors - pushed Indian shares higher on Friday, enabling the Sensex to end the week with a 9.2% gain.
The first wave of US quarterly corporate earnings reports arrived stronger than expected, soothing investor fears of another economic crisis and helping push the Dow Jones Industrial Average to its strongest weekly gain since March.
The Dow ended the week up 7.3% at 8743.94, taking just five days to recover almost all the 7.4% decline of the previous four weeks, as investors took heart from blowout earnings by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and positive comments from J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Intel Corp.
Sensex Ends up 3.5%; Gains Over 9% In The Immediate Past Week
Positive trade in global markets and heavy institutional buying - mainly by foreign investors - pushed Indian shares higher on Friday, enabling the Sensex to end the week with a 9.2% gain.
Monday, July 13, 2009
Goldman Sachs upgrade gives world markets a boost
European and U.S. stock markets rose today after a well-respected banking analyst stoked hopes that this week's earnings from some of the U.S.'s leading banks may well surprise to the upside.
The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 65.36 points, or 1.6 percent, at 4,192.53 while Germany's DAX jumped 102.12 points, or 2.2 percent, to 4,678.43. The CAC-40 in France was up 37.23 points, or 1.3 percent, to 3,020.33.
And on Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 48.44 points, or 0.6 percent, at 8,194.96 soon after the open while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 5.33 points, or 0.6 percent, at 884.46.
Europe had been trading only modestly higher while Wall Street futures had been pointing to a lower opening. That changed after Meredith Whitney told CNBC Television that she had upgraded her recommendation on U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to "buy" and raised her price target to $186 a share -- a day before it reports its second-quarter earnings. Whitney, who has been viewed as bearish on the sector, also said Bank of America Corp. could be good value.
In early trading, Goldman Sachs was up 2.9 percent at $145.98 while Bank of America rose 3.9 percent to $12.34.
The comments came as investors were fully focused on the U.S. second quarter reporting season, which really kicks into gear this week with a raft of companies reporting.
Whitney's upgrade "has given markets a shot in the arm," said Richard Hunter, equities strategist at Hargreaves Lansdown stockbrokers in London.
Most of the attention this will be on the U.S. banks, which arguably were the catalyst to the first synchronized global economic downturn since the Second World War. Goldman Sachs is the first major U.S. financial institution to report on Tuesday, followed by JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of American Corp. and Citigroup Inc. later in the week.
The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 65.36 points, or 1.6 percent, at 4,192.53 while Germany's DAX jumped 102.12 points, or 2.2 percent, to 4,678.43. The CAC-40 in France was up 37.23 points, or 1.3 percent, to 3,020.33.
And on Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 48.44 points, or 0.6 percent, at 8,194.96 soon after the open while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 5.33 points, or 0.6 percent, at 884.46.
Europe had been trading only modestly higher while Wall Street futures had been pointing to a lower opening. That changed after Meredith Whitney told CNBC Television that she had upgraded her recommendation on U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to "buy" and raised her price target to $186 a share -- a day before it reports its second-quarter earnings. Whitney, who has been viewed as bearish on the sector, also said Bank of America Corp. could be good value.
In early trading, Goldman Sachs was up 2.9 percent at $145.98 while Bank of America rose 3.9 percent to $12.34.
The comments came as investors were fully focused on the U.S. second quarter reporting season, which really kicks into gear this week with a raft of companies reporting.
Whitney's upgrade "has given markets a shot in the arm," said Richard Hunter, equities strategist at Hargreaves Lansdown stockbrokers in London.
Most of the attention this will be on the U.S. banks, which arguably were the catalyst to the first synchronized global economic downturn since the Second World War. Goldman Sachs is the first major U.S. financial institution to report on Tuesday, followed by JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of American Corp. and Citigroup Inc. later in the week.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
US Stocks Mixed With Shaw Group Slipping, Yahoo Gaining
US Stocks finished mixed on Friday as profit reports trickled in, with Shaw Group sliding after an earnings miss, Yahoo gaining on an analyst upgrade, and Exxon Mobil continuing its recent decline.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 36.65, or 0.45%, to 8146.52. For the week, the index lost 1.62%, declining for the fourth week in a row. The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 3.55, or 0.40%, to 879.13. For the week, the index lost 1.93%, also down four weeks in a row. The Nasdaq gained 3.48, or 0.20%, to 1756.03. For the week, it lost 2.25%, falling for the second straight week.
Friday's economic data showed that consumer confidence dropped in the middle of July.
"No one expects the second-quarter [earnings] to be good," said Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald. Earnings reports so far show that companies are still using cost cuts to prop up their profits and are yet to see sales rebound, he said.
Commodity stocks came under pressure during the week and extended some of those losses Friday. Crude stocks tumbled Friday as crude-oil prices continued to slide. Exxon fell 85 cents, or 1.3%, to 65.12, and lost 4.9% for the week.
Shaw Group fell 2.47, or 9.4%, to 23.69. The engineering and construction company's fiscal third-quarter earnings dropped, partly due to costs related to two fossil contracts.
Investors' focus turned to earnings this week as Alcoa reported results, marking the official start of the earnings season. The aluminum company reported a quarterly loss midweek but topped Wall Street's expectations. Its stock fell 5.3% for the week.
Elsewhere, CME Group fell during the week following news the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is planning to propose sweeping trading limits on oil, natural gas and possibly other commodities. For the week, the stock lost 12.7%.
Yahoo (Nasdaq) gained 38 cents, or 2.6%, to 14.93. Thomas Weisel upgraded Yahoo to market weight from underweight, saying it believes the company's outlook "is determined more by the operational changes made within the management ranks and less on a potential exogenous event with Microsoft."
American depositary shares of Infosys Technologies (Nasdaq) gained 1.46, or 4.2%, to 35.95. The Indian technology company Friday met some market expectations and beat some other market expectations and posted a rise in its fiscal first-quarter profit.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 36.65, or 0.45%, to 8146.52. For the week, the index lost 1.62%, declining for the fourth week in a row. The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 3.55, or 0.40%, to 879.13. For the week, the index lost 1.93%, also down four weeks in a row. The Nasdaq gained 3.48, or 0.20%, to 1756.03. For the week, it lost 2.25%, falling for the second straight week.
Friday's economic data showed that consumer confidence dropped in the middle of July.
"No one expects the second-quarter [earnings] to be good," said Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald. Earnings reports so far show that companies are still using cost cuts to prop up their profits and are yet to see sales rebound, he said.
Commodity stocks came under pressure during the week and extended some of those losses Friday. Crude stocks tumbled Friday as crude-oil prices continued to slide. Exxon fell 85 cents, or 1.3%, to 65.12, and lost 4.9% for the week.
Shaw Group fell 2.47, or 9.4%, to 23.69. The engineering and construction company's fiscal third-quarter earnings dropped, partly due to costs related to two fossil contracts.
Investors' focus turned to earnings this week as Alcoa reported results, marking the official start of the earnings season. The aluminum company reported a quarterly loss midweek but topped Wall Street's expectations. Its stock fell 5.3% for the week.
Elsewhere, CME Group fell during the week following news the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is planning to propose sweeping trading limits on oil, natural gas and possibly other commodities. For the week, the stock lost 12.7%.
Yahoo (Nasdaq) gained 38 cents, or 2.6%, to 14.93. Thomas Weisel upgraded Yahoo to market weight from underweight, saying it believes the company's outlook "is determined more by the operational changes made within the management ranks and less on a potential exogenous event with Microsoft."
American depositary shares of Infosys Technologies (Nasdaq) gained 1.46, or 4.2%, to 35.95. The Indian technology company Friday met some market expectations and beat some other market expectations and posted a rise in its fiscal first-quarter profit.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Infosys shines, Sensex whines
The Sensex today opened 105 points higher at 13,803 on the back of smart gains after Infosys came out with its Q1 numbers which were largely in line with the market expectations.
The index hovered around the break-even point for the major part of the day. The better-than-expected index of industrial production (IIP) numbers which rose to 2.7% in May lifted the sentiment for a brief while. As a result the Sensex spurted to a high of 13,897.
However, sudden selling in the late trades mainly in index heavyweight Reliance saw the index nose-dive to a low of 13,418, down 478 points from the day's high.
The Sensex finally ended at 13,504, down 253 points.
The BSE Oil & Gas index tumbled 3% to 8,533. The Power, Capital Goods, Realty and PSU indexes declined 2-2.5% each. While IT index advanced 2% to 3,196.
Reliance and HDFC accounted for nearlt half of the losses.While the former accounted for 80 points loss on the Sensex, the latter shaved off another 38 points.
The market breadth was fairly negative - out of 2,638 shares traded, 1,785 declined and 772 shares advanced on the BSE.
INDEX SHAKERS...
Reliance Infrastructure tumbled 6.5% to Rs 1,029, and Jaiprakash Associates slumped over 5.5% to Rs 186.
Sun Pharma slipped over 4% to Rs 1,121.
Reliance Communications dropped 5.5% to Rs 242, and Bharti Airtel was down 2% at Rs 782.
Reliance shed 4% at Rs 1,778. The stock clocked volumes of 1.12 million shares on the BSE today.
SBI declined 3.5% to Rs 1,544 and HDFC Bank decreased 2% to Rs 1,369. ICICI Bank was down 1% at Rs 629.
...AND THE MOVERS
Wipro advanced around 3.5% to Rs 384. Infosys added around 3% to Rs 1,726 after the company posted a 17.2% increase in net profit to Rs 1,527 crore for the first quarter of current fiscal as compared to Rs 1,302 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2008. TCS gained 1.5% at Rs 394.
Sterlite moved up 3% to Rs 575.
VOLUME & VALUE TOPPERS
Educomp Solutions topped the value chart on the BSE with a turnover of Rs 266.77 crore. It was followed by Reliance (Rs 205.89 crore), Reliance Capital (Rs 201.77 crore), Suzlon (Rs 183.69 crore) and Unitech (Rs 165.10 crore).
Unitech led the volume chart with trades of 23.27 million shares. It was followed by Cals Refineries (22.73 million), Suzlon (21.08 million), Mahindra Satyam (20.03 million) and Reliance Natural Resources (10.11 million) shares on the BSE.
The index hovered around the break-even point for the major part of the day. The better-than-expected index of industrial production (IIP) numbers which rose to 2.7% in May lifted the sentiment for a brief while. As a result the Sensex spurted to a high of 13,897.
However, sudden selling in the late trades mainly in index heavyweight Reliance saw the index nose-dive to a low of 13,418, down 478 points from the day's high.
The Sensex finally ended at 13,504, down 253 points.
The BSE Oil & Gas index tumbled 3% to 8,533. The Power, Capital Goods, Realty and PSU indexes declined 2-2.5% each. While IT index advanced 2% to 3,196.
Reliance and HDFC accounted for nearlt half of the losses.While the former accounted for 80 points loss on the Sensex, the latter shaved off another 38 points.
The market breadth was fairly negative - out of 2,638 shares traded, 1,785 declined and 772 shares advanced on the BSE.
INDEX SHAKERS...
Reliance Infrastructure tumbled 6.5% to Rs 1,029, and Jaiprakash Associates slumped over 5.5% to Rs 186.
Sun Pharma slipped over 4% to Rs 1,121.
Reliance Communications dropped 5.5% to Rs 242, and Bharti Airtel was down 2% at Rs 782.
Reliance shed 4% at Rs 1,778. The stock clocked volumes of 1.12 million shares on the BSE today.
SBI declined 3.5% to Rs 1,544 and HDFC Bank decreased 2% to Rs 1,369. ICICI Bank was down 1% at Rs 629.
...AND THE MOVERS
Wipro advanced around 3.5% to Rs 384. Infosys added around 3% to Rs 1,726 after the company posted a 17.2% increase in net profit to Rs 1,527 crore for the first quarter of current fiscal as compared to Rs 1,302 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2008. TCS gained 1.5% at Rs 394.
Sterlite moved up 3% to Rs 575.
VOLUME & VALUE TOPPERS
Educomp Solutions topped the value chart on the BSE with a turnover of Rs 266.77 crore. It was followed by Reliance (Rs 205.89 crore), Reliance Capital (Rs 201.77 crore), Suzlon (Rs 183.69 crore) and Unitech (Rs 165.10 crore).
Unitech led the volume chart with trades of 23.27 million shares. It was followed by Cals Refineries (22.73 million), Suzlon (21.08 million), Mahindra Satyam (20.03 million) and Reliance Natural Resources (10.11 million) shares on the BSE.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
MOUNTAIN OF DEBT: Rising US government debt may be next (world) crisis
MOUNTAIN OF DEBT: Legacy of debt from Founding Fathers not celebrated on Independence Day
The Founding Fathers of the United States of America left one legacy not celebrated on Independence Day but which affects us all (in the US and all over the world). It's the national debt.
The country first got into debt to help pay for the Revolutionary War. Growing ever since, the debt stands today at a staggering $11.4 trillion -- equivalent to about $37,000 for each and every American. And it's expanding by over $1 trillion a year.
The mountain of debt easily could become the next full-fledged economic crisis without firm action from Washington, economists of all stripes warn.
"Unless we demonstrate a strong commitment to fiscal sustainability in the longer term, we will have neither financial stability nor healthy economic growth," Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke recently told Congress.
Higher taxes, or reduced federal benefits and services -- or a combination of both -- may be the inevitable consequences.
The debt is complicating efforts by President Barack Obama and Congress to cope with the worst recession in decades as stimulus and bailout spending combine with lower tax revenues to widen the gap.
Interest payments on the debt alone cost $452 billion last year -- the largest federal spending category after Medicare-Medicaid, Social Security and defense. It's quickly crowding out all other government spending. And the Treasury is finding it harder to find new lenders.
The United States went into the red the first time in 1790 when it assumed $75 million in the war debts of the Continental Congress.
Alexander Hamilton, the first treasury secretary, said, "A national debt, if not excessive, will be to us a national blessing."
Some blessing.
Since then, the nation has only been free of debt once, in 1834-1835.
The national debt has expanded during times of war and usually contracted in times of peace, while staying on a generally upward trajectory. Over the past several decades, it has climbed sharply -- except for a respite from 1998 to 2000, when there were annual budget surpluses, reflecting in large part what turned out to be an overheated economy.
The debt soared with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and economic stimulus spending under President George W. Bush and now Obama.
The odometer-style "debt clock" near Times Square -- put in place in 1989 when the debt was a mere $2.7 trillion -- ran out of numbers and had to be shut down when the debt surged past $10 trillion in 2008.
The clock has since been refurbished so higher numbers fit. There are several debt clocks on Web sites maintained by public interest groups that let you watch hundreds, thousands, millions zip by in a matter of seconds.
The debt gap is "something that keeps me awake at night," Obama says.
He pledged to cut the budget "deficit" roughly in half by the end of his first term. But "deficit" just means the difference between government receipts and spending in a single budget year.
This year's deficit is now estimated at about $1.85 trillion.
Deficits don't reflect holdover indebtedness from previous years. Some spending items -- such as emergency appropriations bills and receipts in the Social Security program -- aren't included, either, although they are part of the national debt.
The national debt is a broader, and more telling, way to look at the government's balance sheets than glancing at deficits.
According to the Treasury Department, which updates the number "to the penny" every few days, the national debt was $11,518,472,742,288 on Wednesday.
The overall debt is now slightly over 80 percent of the annual output of the entire U.S. economy, as measured by the gross domestic product.
By historical standards, it's not proportionately as high as during World War II, when it briefly rose to 120 percent of GDP. But it's still a huge liability.
Also, the United States is not the only nation struggling under a huge national debt. Among major countries, Japan, Italy, India, France, Germany and Canada have comparable debts as percentages of their GDPs.
The Peter G. Peterson Foundation, established by a former US commerce secretary and investment banker, argues that the $11.4 trillion debt figures does not take into account roughly $45 trillion in unlisted liabilities and unfunded retirement and health care commitments.
That would put the nation's full obligations at $56 trillion, or roughly $184,000 per American, according to this calculation.
The Founding Fathers of the United States of America left one legacy not celebrated on Independence Day but which affects us all (in the US and all over the world). It's the national debt.
The country first got into debt to help pay for the Revolutionary War. Growing ever since, the debt stands today at a staggering $11.4 trillion -- equivalent to about $37,000 for each and every American. And it's expanding by over $1 trillion a year.
The mountain of debt easily could become the next full-fledged economic crisis without firm action from Washington, economists of all stripes warn.
"Unless we demonstrate a strong commitment to fiscal sustainability in the longer term, we will have neither financial stability nor healthy economic growth," Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke recently told Congress.
Higher taxes, or reduced federal benefits and services -- or a combination of both -- may be the inevitable consequences.
The debt is complicating efforts by President Barack Obama and Congress to cope with the worst recession in decades as stimulus and bailout spending combine with lower tax revenues to widen the gap.
Interest payments on the debt alone cost $452 billion last year -- the largest federal spending category after Medicare-Medicaid, Social Security and defense. It's quickly crowding out all other government spending. And the Treasury is finding it harder to find new lenders.
The United States went into the red the first time in 1790 when it assumed $75 million in the war debts of the Continental Congress.
Alexander Hamilton, the first treasury secretary, said, "A national debt, if not excessive, will be to us a national blessing."
Some blessing.
Since then, the nation has only been free of debt once, in 1834-1835.
The national debt has expanded during times of war and usually contracted in times of peace, while staying on a generally upward trajectory. Over the past several decades, it has climbed sharply -- except for a respite from 1998 to 2000, when there were annual budget surpluses, reflecting in large part what turned out to be an overheated economy.
The debt soared with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and economic stimulus spending under President George W. Bush and now Obama.
The odometer-style "debt clock" near Times Square -- put in place in 1989 when the debt was a mere $2.7 trillion -- ran out of numbers and had to be shut down when the debt surged past $10 trillion in 2008.
The clock has since been refurbished so higher numbers fit. There are several debt clocks on Web sites maintained by public interest groups that let you watch hundreds, thousands, millions zip by in a matter of seconds.
The debt gap is "something that keeps me awake at night," Obama says.
He pledged to cut the budget "deficit" roughly in half by the end of his first term. But "deficit" just means the difference between government receipts and spending in a single budget year.
This year's deficit is now estimated at about $1.85 trillion.
Deficits don't reflect holdover indebtedness from previous years. Some spending items -- such as emergency appropriations bills and receipts in the Social Security program -- aren't included, either, although they are part of the national debt.
The national debt is a broader, and more telling, way to look at the government's balance sheets than glancing at deficits.
According to the Treasury Department, which updates the number "to the penny" every few days, the national debt was $11,518,472,742,288 on Wednesday.
The overall debt is now slightly over 80 percent of the annual output of the entire U.S. economy, as measured by the gross domestic product.
By historical standards, it's not proportionately as high as during World War II, when it briefly rose to 120 percent of GDP. But it's still a huge liability.
Also, the United States is not the only nation struggling under a huge national debt. Among major countries, Japan, Italy, India, France, Germany and Canada have comparable debts as percentages of their GDPs.
The Peter G. Peterson Foundation, established by a former US commerce secretary and investment banker, argues that the $11.4 trillion debt figures does not take into account roughly $45 trillion in unlisted liabilities and unfunded retirement and health care commitments.
That would put the nation's full obligations at $56 trillion, or roughly $184,000 per American, according to this calculation.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
