BOMBAY, 17 March — This week the Ayodhya disturbances initially kept the market low though there was some recovery late in the week.
On Monday the BSE closed at 3,603.97. The only stocks which saw some life were those in the telecom sector. Tata companies were in the limelight.
Private sector auto giant Telco was up after its vehicle sales for February rose by 17.5 percent, including exports.
Telco’s close competitor, Ashok Leyland, also rose though it reported a drop in sales by 21.5 percent in February 2002. Tata Telecom which offers call center solutions and call center equipment was also up.
On Tuesday the Sensex closed at 3,535.80. Zee Telefilms was down at Rs.153.25 though it announced that it would be taking up a strategic stake in Padmalaya Telefilms for Rs.142.20 per share. Saregama India (formerly HMV) rose after the company announced its move into the home video segment. After a long time, shoe company, Bata India was in the news and it saw strong buying following a turnaround by the company. It is now aggressively launching new products and is focusing on mass marketing rather than the earlier emphasis on particular segments. PSU Hind Zinc was up at Rs.31.45 on reports that the government is calling for final bids for a part of the 76 percent that it holds in the company.
On Wednesday the BSE closed at 3,569.62. Dr. Reddy’s Labs was in the limelight following its decision to buy two small British generic drug companies for 9.05 million pounds ($12.76 million). Buoyed by this, the other pharma pivotals like Ranbaxy Labs and GlaxoSmithKline also advanced. Shipping Corporation of India hit its 52-week high of Rs.69.20 on renewed buying interest on reports that Tata TD Waterhouse valued it at Rs.127 per share.
On Thursday the BSE closed at 3,580.83. Volumes were very low as investors were reluctant to take fresh positions. It was a day of pharma stocks. First GlaxoSmithKline rose on reports that it has rationalized its distribution network in an attempt to cut costs and shore up margins. Parke-Davis was up at Rs.166.25 when for the quarter ended Feb. 28, the MNC pharma company posted a 145 percent rise in net profit and Pfizer also surged to Rs.441.10 when it reported for the same quarter a 37.3 percent rise in net profit. IDBI Bank spurted on reports that the financial institutions had agreed to give a no-merger letter to IDBI Bank stating that it will not go for a reverse merger with it, thereby enabling IDBI Bank to offer a 26 percent or higher stake to a strategic partner.
On Friday the BSE closed at 3,617.68. PSU stocks were in the limelight on reports that government of India has invited expressions of interest (EoI) from probable advisors to its divestment program in BPCL and HPCL. MTNL firmed up to Rs.154.75 following a hike of 22-33 percent in basic telephony rentals for commercial users in urban areas by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. Kochi Refineries hit the 20 percent upper limit of the circuit breaker at Rs.43.40 on reports that BPCL is examining a proposal to merge the company with itself. In the coming week also, the market is expected to exhibit similar trends.
Gold was at Rs.4,910/- per 10 gms and silver was at Rs.7,805/- per Kg.
US dollar was at Rs.48.66, pound sterling at Rs.69.31, euro at Rs.42.99, UAE dirham at Rs.13.25, Kuwaiti dinar at Rs.158.60, Bahraini dinar at Rs.129.20, Saudi riyal at Rs.12.99, Qatari riyal at Rs.13.38 and Omani riyal at Rs.126.51.
