The Hindu Business Line : Media stocks up on FDI announcement

THE bull-run continued on the bourses as the markets ended the day with strong gains. Sustained buying in the index heavyweights, continued inflow of FIIs, fall in crude oil prices and approval of overseas investment in private radio FM stations by the Government contributed to the bullish sentiment.

The Sensex opened the day with 34.4 points higher than its previous close and maintained the momentum throughout the day. It reached a record high of 7218.3 before closing at 7193.9, recording a gain of about one per cent. The S&P CNX Nifty opened on a flat note and crossed the 2,200-mark in the intra-day trade, while it closed at 2220.6, up by 1.3 per cent. The markets gained ground on the back of renewed buying in HDFC Bank, BHEL, SBI, Tata Power, Maruti, Satyam, Infosys, Wipro and TCS. The BSE IT index was the outperformer, which gained 1.7 per cent.

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The IT stocks were the biggest gainers on Thursday. Infosys, Satyam, TCS and Wipro surged by 1.4 per cent, 3.8 per cent, 1.6 per cent and 1.5 per cent, respectively. Among the other IT stocks that recorded sharp increase in price were Aztec Software, HCL Technologies, i-Flex Solutions and Ramco Systems.

Media and entertainment stocks also flared up after the Government approved 20 per cent FDI in private radio FM stations and also a revenue sharing agreement. TV Today, NDTV, Deccan Chronicle surged by 9.4 per cent, 6.8 per cent and 5.5 per cent, respectively. Mid-Day Multimedia also posted respectable gains.

The bulls were widespread across the counters of FMCG stocks that rose sharply. Dabur India was up by 3.8 per cent after it sold its entire stake in its French cheese-making joint venture. Capital goods sector also witnessed widespread buying action. The bulls were active among the pharmaceutical stocks, which moved up sharply. There was mixed bag of response among the auto stocks. Bajaj Auto, Eicher Motors, Maruti, M&M, Sundaram Fasteners and MRF led the gainer's pack. However, TVS Motors, CEAT and Punjab Tractors came in for selling pressure.

Oil and energy stocks also witnessed mixed action. While Hindustan Oil Exploration, GAIL and ONGC advanced, Chennai Petroleum, HPCL, BPCL and IOC shed value.

Among the banking stocks, HDFC Bank, SBI and Bank of India rose 5.3 per cent, 1.3 per cent and 2.3 per cent, respectively. UTI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Union Bank and Kotak Bank also notched up significantly.

Most of the metal stocks, however, stayed out of favour. Lloyd Steel, Jindal Vijaynagar, Tata Steel, SAIL, Essar, Sesa Goa and Madras Aluminium shed considerable value.

Other notable gainers on the Nifty were Balaji Telefilms, Balrampur Chini, Bombay Dyeing, Container Corporation, Raymond and Indian Hotels. Those that were included in the losers' pack were Arvind Mills, Exide Industries, India Cements, GE Shipping and Gokaldas Exports.

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