BOMBAY, 6 January — On the first day of this week’s trading which was also the last day of 2001, the BSE closed at 3,262.22. This was despite the disappointment over reports that the net asset value of Unit Trust of India’s (UTI) flagship US-64 scheme stood at Rs.5.9 as of Dec. 28 against expectations of Rs.6-Rs.7. Players say that as those who wanted to exit the US-64 scheme had already done so, there was no panic in the market. Reliance Petroleum was a major gainer of the day , following diminishing possibility of a war.
On Tuesday the BSE closed at 3,246.45. Tech stocks, which were the major gainers in the last two sessions, were worst hit on profit booking. The rest of the market followed as investors booked profits. The overall movements in the market remained lackluster. HFCL was down at Rs.82.75. There were reports that the company’s proposed resolution to pay dividend to its shareholders had been blocked by financial institutions. Hero Honda Motors was up at Rs.252.25 after the company announced a 45.6 percent rise in its December 2001 motorcycle sales.
On Wednesday the BSE Sensex closed at 3,246.15. Cement and pharmaceutical pivotals attracted fresh buying interest. Two-wheeler stocks rose after major two-wheeler companies unveiled impressive sales growth for the month of December 2001. Tech pivotals like Satyam Computer and NIIT ended with modest gains after volatile intra-day movements on institutional buying interest. Gujarat Ambuja Cements ended steady after it announced that its shipments in December 2001 rose 36.76 percent on year-on-year basis to 625,000 tons. Bajaj Auto rose on reports that it had achieved a 85 percent year-on-year rise in its December motorcycle sales at 62,379 units. Cigarette major ITC crossed the Rs.700-mark to close at Rs.709 on defensive buying.
On Thursday the Sensex closed at 3,308.02. While Old Economy stocks in the cement and automobiles sectors rose on impressive sales figures posted by some of the companies, tech stocks climbed on expectations of improved Q3 results. NIIT hit the 10 percent upper limit of the circuit breaker at Rs.241 on rumors that a private equity fund may pick a 10 percent stake in the company at Rs.400 a share. Infosys Technologies also advanced further ahead of the announcements of their quarterly results, which will start pouring in from next week.
State Bank of India was up at Rs.199.43 on rumors that it was likely to receive a nod from the government for relaxing the investment limit to foreign institutional investors. MTNL slipped further on reports that the state-owned basic telecom service provider may not be allowed to provide international long distance telecom services.
On Friday the Sensex closed at 3,375.74. Overnight gains in the US markets also helped the sentiment for tech stocks. There was hectic buying in tech stocks. The market is expecting Infosys to revise upward its future earnings estimate while announcing its Q3 results next week, due to the buoyancy in the US bourses. Hectic activity was seen on the Satyam Computer counter on rumors about the proposed sale of its stake in Satyam Infoway. Market circles opine the rally could be operator-led and local operators may be building positions ahead of the foreign fund allocations for India.
Gold was at Rs.4,570/- per 10 gms and silver was at Rs.7,585/- per Kg.
US dollar at Rs.47.82, pound sterling at Rs.69.50, Deutsche mark at Rs.22.18, euro at Rs.43.39, UAE dirham at Rs.13.14, Kuwaiti dinar at Rs.157.16, Bahraini dinar at Rs.128.06, Saudi riyal at Rs.12.87, Qatari riyal at Rs.13.26 and Omani riyal at Rs.125.46.