The Hindu Business Line : Crude price, Q1 concerns weigh on sentiment

After a flat start, the Sensex moved on to an all-time high of 7,338 during the day but profit-booking mood soon set in. Selling pressure intensified towards close of the session and the Sensex settled at 7,247.9 - a decline of 56 points or 0.8 per cent.

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Crude prices rising above $60 per barrel and less-than- anticipated performance by the IT major Infosys and concerns over other Q1 results may have caused the negative sentiments.

Despite heavy selling the market breadth seemed positive with an advance decline ratio of 1.2:1.

The BSE Midcap and Smallcap refused to give in to bearish forces and closed with marginal gains of about 0.6 per cent.

On the NSE, the S&P CNX Nifty shed 16.75 points to close at 2,204 while the CNX Midcap 200 joined its counter part in the BSE to close in positive territory.

Capital goods and cement stocks put up a smart rally while technology, auto and refinery counters witnessed selling action.

In the basket of BSE-30 while Hero Honda, Tata Power, SBI, Larsen & Toubro aided the northward journey initially, heavy selling in the stocks of Ranbaxy, Satyam Computer, HDFC Bank and Bharti Tele pulled the index downwards. ITC closed with marginal declines and could not make a positive impact with the announcement of its plan to set up a new mill for Rs 2,500 crore to make paper.

In the mid-cap section, Gujarat Alkalies and Bata had a field day. The former rose 8.3 per cent to close at Rs 146.3 after it announced that it would receive a compensation of Rs 40.8 crore from the Government as part of an agreement to phase out production of an environment-unfriendly chemical. The Bata stock surged 13 per cent to close at Rs 107.6. The company plans to use land at its factory near Kolkata to build township as part of its revival plans.

In the capital goods sector, HMT rallied smartly and gained 15 per cent. Graphite India, Greaves Cotton and Bharat Earth Movers also ended in positive territory while Alstom, ABB and Amforge stayed out of rally.

Cement stocks were buoyed by the strong first quarter results of Associated Cement. The company announced an increase of 72 per cent in its Q1 earnings including a standalone income. India Cements led the rally with a gain of 2 per cent. UltraTech Cement, Madras Cements and Dalmia Cement rose by about one per cent.

In the banking counters, while Bank Nifty managed to close in the green, the BSE Bankex ended in negative territory. Bank of Baroda, Syndicate Bank and Punjab National Bank made marginal gains, whereas ICICI Bank, Vijaya Bank and UTI Bank succumbed to bearish forces.

Auto stocks were trading firmly during the early sessions but witnessed selling pressure towards the end. Punjab Tractors made an impact in the bourses after a seven-fold increase in its first quarter earnings because of a one-time gain from the sale of its stake in Swaraj Mazda. The stock rose 2 per cent to close at Rs 183.2. Front line stocks Tata Motors and Maruti Udyog closed in the red.

The IT sector was weighed down by concerns over first quarter results. Infosys declined by 0.8 per cent to Rs 2,202.6, after its quarterly results failed to impress. TCS, HCL, Ramco System and i-flex Solutions followed suite. Aztec Software, however, treaded on positive grounds and surged by 2 per cent after its first quarter results more than doubled.

California Software also rose by 11 per cent after its plan to acquire 51 per cent stake in California-based Alameda.

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