The Hindu Business Line : Tata Motors slides on weak numbers

The US stock markets plummeted last week as worse-than-expected decrease in jobs raised fresh concern that rising unemployment will prolong the recession. Despite better-than-expected factory orders, the US stocks fell for a third week in a row. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slid 2.5 per cent to 896.42 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 1.9 per cent, o 8,280.74.

Thanks to the re-emergence of FII buying, the domestic markets ended up with strong gains. Economic Survey, which recommended sweeping tax reforms, and the Railway Budget, which kept freight rates and passenger fares unchanged, helped the market gain strength. The BSE Sensex gained 1.01 per cent and the NSE’s S&P CNX Nifty moved up by 1.11 per cent.

It was mixed show by Indian counters at the US bourses. This week, the biggest loser was Tata Motors; the ADR tumbled 11.7 per cent at $8.6 against the previous week close of $9.7.

Tata Motors posted a consolidated net loss of Rs 2,505.25 crore for the full year ended 2009 against a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 2,167.70 crore for FY-08. Consolidated revenues for the reporting year were Rs 70,938.85 crore (Rs 35,660.07 crore). Tata Motors’ consolidated results include that of Land Rover and Jaguar, the British car brands which the company acquired from Ford in June 2008.

ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank slid 3.33 per cent and 3.24 per cent respectively at $29.85 ($30.89) and $101.96 ($105.37). Marketmen appeared to have booked profits as these counters had a sharp run up in the prices till recently.

IT counters

Infotech companies closed the week in mixed fashion. While Infosys and Wipro closed lower by 3.85 per cent and 1.18 per cent respectively, scam-tainted Satyam Computer and Patni Computer finished the week with a gain of 3.73 per cent and 0.94 per cent. Infosys Technologies Ltd is scheduled to announce its first quarter financial performance ended June 30, 2009 July 10 (Friday).

Telecom majors MTNL and Tata Communications also closed the week on a positive note. While the former gained 6.14 per cent, the latter inched up by 0.87 per cent.

Dr. Reddy’s Lab was the other counter that closed the week on strong note. The ADR jumped 3.36 per cent at $16.93 ($16.38).

Internet majors Rediff.com and Sify, however, closed the week with losses. While Rediff.com slipped 2.56 per cent at $2.66 ($2.56), Sify slid 3.64 per cent at $1.59 ($1.65).

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