Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Saturday, Mar 12, 2005
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Saturday, Mar 12, 2005 |
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Markets
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Commentary Columns - Sensor Mid-caps make gains; heavyweights turn bearish Shanthi Venkataraman
UP one day, down the next. The 7000 mark appears to be eluding the bulls, with the Sensex falling 53 points on Friday, closing below the 6900 mark, at 6853.73 points. The S & P CNX Nifty declined by about 13 points, to close at 2154 points. Weakness in heavyweights such as ITC, ONGC, HDFC and BHEL, dragged down the benchmark indices. The day, however, belonged to mid-cap stocks, which continues to attract buying interest. The CNX Midcap 200 advanced by 10 points or 0.34 per cent to close at 2917.15, even as other key indices ended the day in the red. The Sensex began the day on a positive note, opening nearly 15 points higher than its previous close at 6921 points. It continued its uptrend, reaching a high of 6948.54. Towards the afternoon, however, the markets came under the grip of the bears. The Sensex rapidly declined and ended the day in the negative territory. Only five stocks of the 30-strong Sensex advanced on Friday, reflecting the negative undertone. Gainers amid the selling pressure include the stocks of Tata Steel, Bajaj Auto, Hero Honda and Bharti Tele-Ventures. The stock of Tata Steel gained smartly, adding 2.24 per cent to close at Rs 440.80. The stock of Bajaj Auto appreciated 1.67 per cent or Rs 18.35 to close at Rs 1,118.50. Steel stocks stole the show on Friday. The possibility of further hikes in steel prices hikes has revved up investor interest in the sector. Usual suspects such as Tata Steel, SAIL, and Essar Steel took centre stage. There was however, heightened activity in a number of second-rung stocks such as Uttam Galva Steel, SAL Steel and Bhushan Steel, to name a few. The stock of Uttam Galva sizzled, ending the day higher by 20 per cent, at Rs 63.15. Volumes spurted from 11.52 lakh shares on Thursday to 52.35 lakh shares on Friday. The stock of Aban Lloyd Chiles jumped five per cent or Rs 90.25 to close at Rs 1,894.95. The company is holding a meeting on March 18 to consider a proposal to split its shares and raise funds by way of global depository receipts or overseas convertible bonds. The stock of Dishman Pharmaceuticals was another significant gainer. The stock soared 12 per cent or Rs 72.55 to Rs 693.60. The gains follow the announcement of its acquisition of a UK-based Contract Research Company. Dishman is also setting up a new API (active pharmaceutical ingredient) facility in Gujarat. The stock of cigarette-maker Godfrey Philips rose sharply for the second consecutive day, even as that of market leader ITC slumped by two per cent. The former has announced a hike in the prices of its cigarettes, following the Budget proposal to impose additional excise duty on cigarettes. The stock gained 10.66 per cent or Rs 80.7 to close at Rs 837.50. Other strong gainers for the day include the stocks of Titan, Zensar Technologies, Federal Bank, TTK Prestige and Berger Paints. The stock of Zensar Technologies gained 8.98 per cent to close at Rs 225.70. The company has signed an agreement with Japan's Nomura Research Institute, which is expected to help it earn as much as $5 million a year. Volumes jumped from 13,908 shares on Thursday to 2.42 lakh shares on Friday Prominent losers for the day included select engineering and pharmaceutical stocks. Stocks such as Thermax, Alfa Laval and ABB ended the day in the red. Pharmaceutical stocks such as Zandu Pharma, Tasc Pharma, Lupin and Dr Reddy's were notable losers. Stocks of retail majors, Pantaloon and Trent, which were on fire on Thursday, took the day off to cool down and ended the day in the negative.
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