The Hindu Business Line : IT counters end weak on US woes

After recording gains in recent weeks, the US stocks retreated following General Electric Co’s weak performance. The S&P’s 500 Index lost 2.7 per cent to 1,332.83 this week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 2.3 per cent to 12,325.42 and the tech-focussed Nasdaq fell 80.74, or 3.41 per cent, its biggest weekly drop since the week-ended February 8.

Ignoring surging inflation numbers, the Indian benchmarks posted handsome gains last week. The Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex improved 3 per cent as industrial production for February was better compared with the January figure. The S&P CNX Nifty of the NSE gained 2.81 per cent.

mixed show

It was a mixed show by Indian ADRs. Though most of them were moving up during intra-day, Friday’s sharp fall at the US bourses also pushed down the Indian counters.

While recovery in the commodity markets seemed to have helped Sterlite Industries to post a gain of 3.5 per cent over the week, Tata Communications was the worst performer, as the ADR tumbled by more than 15 per cent to $22.85 ($26.98). The other telecommunication major MTNL also declined; the ADR slipped 3.7 per cent to close the week at $4.91 ($5.1).

IT counters succumbed to selling pressure as the signs of US heading recession grew following GE’s financial performance.

Wipro was the worst performer among them as the ADR tumbled 8 per cent to $11.03 ($11.98), while Satyam fell 3.4 per cent at $22.76 ($23.56) and Infosys 2.8 per cent at $35.81 ($36.85). Patni Computers, however, ended a tad better at $12.23 ($12.28).

HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank finished on firm note week-on-week by 0.9 per cent and 0.05 per cent respectively. But they witnessed sharp fall on Friday.

Dr. Reddy’s Lab ended the week with a loss of 2.4 per cent at $14.69 ($15.05).

However, Internet majors Sify and Rediff.com finished the week on firm note at $4.87 ($4.75) and $9.04 ($8.87) respectively.

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