BOMBAY, 7 April — Gujarat weighed on Indian sentiments and rising tension in the Middle East kept the markets nervous.
Crude oil prices shot up to $27 per barrel. Monday, the first day of the new fiscal, began on a positive note. The BSE Sensex closed at 3,500.18. Oil and gas PSUs were in the limelight following the end of the administered price mechanism (APM) for petroleum products.
Stocks of companies with exports potential gained ground following the reforms-oriented Ex-im Policy 2002-07. In specific stocks, Hero Honda Motors was up after it announced a 38.44 percent rise in motorcycles sales for FY 2002. Shaw Wallace surged on reports that the Dubai-based group is keen on buying a 60.93 percent stake in the company.
On Tuesday the BSE closed at 3,505.79. The moods on the bourses turned skeptical because of tension in the Middle East. Fears of a further rise in global crude price and continued violence in the Indian state of Gujarat also affected the sentiment. Bajaj Auto was up at Rs.498.75 after the two-and-three-wheeler major said that its sales rose by 11.6 percent in March 2002. Gujarat Ambuja Cements was also up Rs.214.40 after it reported that cement dispatches for March 2002 had risen by 18 percent. ACC’s dispatches were up by 23.3 percent for the same period. On the other hand, Larsen & Toubro was down at Rs.183.90 when it reported a 4.2 percent year-on-year drop in March 2002 cement dispatches. Pharma company, Sun Pharma slipped on selling pressure.
On Wednesday the BSE closed at 3,462.99. The fall of tech stocks on the NASDAQ further dampened the moods. Almost all IT stocks, were down. In an otherwise dull market, one sparkling stock was Colgate. It was at Rs. 166.80 on rumors of a buyback at a price of more than Rs.200 per share. Stocks of the PSU oil refining companies Indian Oil (Rs. 221.25), Chennai Petroleum (Rs.37.60), Kochi Refineries (Rs.55.90) and BPCL (Rs.323.60) were battered down following the rise in global crude oil prices to around $ 27 per barrel. Entertainment stock, Balaji Telefilms was a scene stealer on expectations of a strong earnings performance for the just concluded fiscal. Analysts expect the company to post an earning per share (EPS) of over Rs.20 in FY 2001-02.
On Thursday the BSE closed at 3,512.55. Stocks of PSUs were again in the limelight. Reliance Industries was in the news after it raised the prices of its polyester, polymer and fiber intermediate products by 4.9 to 16.3 percent effective April 1, 2002.
Colgate slipped on profit-taking. IT stock Wipro was up at Rs.1,785 following the signing of its agreement with global computer major IBM for marketing the latter’s servers in India and also for providing software and solutions to its clients in the Asia Pacific region.
On Friday the BSE closed at 3,500.57. Volumes on the bourses remained low on account of poor institutional participation. Out of the 1,510 issues traded on the exchange, advances outnumbered declines, with 813 gainers and 558 losers. 139 issues remained unchanged. ITC was down at Rs.671.75 after the government slapped a 20 percent luxury tax on cigarettes. Telco was up at Rs.127.50 after it reported a 67 percent jump in sales of Indica cars in March 2002. State owned Nalco jumped to touch a new 52-week high of Rs.96 in intra-day trades on reports that the Aditya Birla group had bought a nearly 4 percent stake in the aluminum company.
Gold was at Rs.5,030/- per 10 gms and silver was at Rs.7,920/- per Kg.
US dollar was at Rs.48.84, pound sterling at Rs.70.22, euro at Rs.43.10, UAE dirham at Rs.13.30, Kuwaiti dinar at Rs.159.08, Bahraini dinar at Rs.129.59, Saudi riyal at Rs.13.03, Qatari riyal at Rs.13.42 and Omani riyal at Rs.126.90.
