The Hindu Business Line : Sunday, April 06, 2003

Demat account: Quick, easy and convenient
WORRIED about mutilated share certificates, postal delays, and counterfeit shares? Then, opt for a demat account. A demat account allows you to buy, sell and transact shares without the endless paperwork and delays. It is also safe, secure and ... More

INVESTMENTS

Perils of indexed investing
PASSIVE equity investment portfolios, especially those that replicate the popular S&P 500 index of US stocks, have been one-way ticket to hell in the last three years. Investments in that strategy lost close to a staggering 37 per cent in value ... More

Stock prices: Watered down by drought
THE effect of a widespread drought may start getting reflected in the earnings numbers that are due this week on. This may cap any sharp upside in stocks. The effect of the drought has been priced in to some extent, but there is room for negative ... More

MUTUAL FUNDS

Equity mutual funds: Slip-ups in managing risk
WHEN it comes to delivering superior risk-adjusted returns, inconsistency has been the hallmark of diversified equity mutual funds. Funds that do well in a bull market fail to perform in a down situation. An appraisal of the risk-adjusted ... More

UTI Services Fund: Hold/Avoid fresh exposures
INVESTORS in the UTI Services Sector Fund can stay invested now and evaluate their exposures once the market's bearish phase runs out. Business Line had recommended paring of exposures in April 2002 and December 2002. The portfolio has, by ... More

HDFC Growth: Hold/Avoid fresh exposures
INVESTORS in HDFC Growth Fund can stay with the fund for now and contemplate paring exposures once the overall market sentiment improves. The fund's performance stacks up well vis-à-vis the broad market. But compared to peer diversified ... More

Problems in picking the right fund: Is it skill or just chance that decides a winner?
ALL mutual fund advertisements carry a warning: "Past performance does not indicate the future performance of the fund." Ordinary investors for long, thought that such a disclaimer was a mere formality, dictated more by SEBI, than any real note ... More

Certification for MF agents
SCAN through the financial section of any newspaper which details the net asset values of mutual fund schemes, and you will see that the variety of products and options offered by mutual funds has multiplied enormously in recent times. ... More

US-64: No cash for everyone
FOR US-64 unit-holders, the deadline for opting for cash has been extended to April 10. However, it looks like unit-holders may not need the extension. It is now clear that for all classes of unit-holders, irrespective of their tax status, not ... More

HSBC alters its load structure
HSBC Mutual Fund has again altered the load structure of its equity scheme. The load is linked to the amount of investment. For investments of less than Rs 25 lakh, the load will be 2 per cent, and for between Rs 25 lakh and Rs 3 crore, it will ... More

Sundaram Growth Fund: Hold
INVESTORS seeking to diversify their equity portfolios may consider investing in Sundaram Growth Fund, the diversified equity fund from Sundaram Mutual. In terms of performance, the fund has been a middle-of-the-roader. In the six years since ... More

Franklin India Prima Plus: Hold
THIS diversified equity fund from the Franklin Templeton stables (the fund migrated to Franklin Templeton from Pioneer ITI) has substantially outperformed the indices over a five-year period. But the long-term track record is inferior to that ... More

STOCKS

Bayer India: Hold
AFTER going through a rough patch, the fortunes of Bayer India have taken a turn for the better over the past two years. The company has been divesting low-contribution businesses for more focussed operations. The proposed acquisition of Aventis ... More

DERIVATIVES MARKETS

Do the derivatives
STARTING this week, we will be coming out with a new fortnightly column 'Do the Derivatives', to focus on learning about the world of opportunity in derivatives. A derivative is a security whose value is derived from an underlying security. ... More

Nifty futures at a discount
THERE was a flurry of activity in the F&O segment this week, with the benchmark indices gaining for four consecutive days. The notional turnover for the whole segment was higher this week at Rs 2,532 crore as compared with last week's turnover. ... More

REGULATORY BODIES & RULINGS

SEs asked to allot unique client codes to MFs, FIIs
CLOSE on the heels of T+2 rolling settlement coming into effect from April 1, the Securities and Exchange Board of India has directed all the stock exchanges to generate a unique client code for mutual funds and each scheme of a mutual fund, ... More

SEC requires listing standards for audit committees
THE Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) US voted to adopt rules directing the national securities exchanges and national securities associations to prohibit the listing of any security of an issuer that is not in compliance with the audit ... More

Ashok Lahiri on SEBI board

COMMENTARY

Nalco surges 13.3 pc on improved export forecast

Positive outlook for Syndicate Bank

Further upside likely in Infosys, Satyam

US markets: Positive outlook

Between war and SARS

RECOMMENDATION

TNPL: Hold
SHAREHOLDERS of Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers (TNPL) can stay invested at the current price levels as there could be valuation gains. Investors with a penchant for risk can consider small exposures, especially on any price declines from the ... More

Digital GlobalSoft: Hold
THE Digital GlobalSoft (Digital) stock has witnessed some weakness over the past seven trading days. The stock recorded a 9.5 per cent decline in value during this period. This is attributed mainly to the rumours swirling in the market that HP, ... More

Macmillan India: Hold
SHAREHOLDERS of Macmillan India can continue to hold on to the stock with a medium-term perspective. The increased liquidity in the stock, post-bonus issue, and its listing on the National Stock Exchange augur well for the ... More

Sterlite Optical: Hold/Avoid fresh exposures
THERE seems to be no `light' at the end of the optical tunnel for Sterlite Optical Technologies (Sterlite). For the third consecutive quarter in 2002-03, Sterlite recorded net losses. To compound its woes, it was accompanied by a sharp fall in ... More

Cummins India: Service business is key

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