indian stock market

Realty index slumps 44% , Capital Goods, Power among worst performers Our Bureau Mumbai, March 7 Shares of mid- and small-cap companies were the hardest hit in the last two months, since the market started falling from its peak in January. The mid and small-caps have fallen 50.58 per cent and 69.34 per cent respectively from their all-time highs in January. The benchmark index, Sensex, has fallen 32.75 per cent from its peak. The Sensex touched an all-time high of 21206.77 on January 10 and on Friday it closed at 15975.52. Bull rally "When the markets are getting corrected, people sell their holding in the small- and mid-cap space as they feel that the larger stocks have more value in them and offload small-cap stocks initially. This is one of the reasons why there is always a correction gap of 15 per cent to 20 per cent between the frontline and smaller stocks. Also, when the markets start rallying, there will be buying in the large

Anil Ambani 'biggest gainer' with $23.8 b increase Our Bureau New Delhi, March 6 An upheaval in the global billionaire's club is marked not only with American investor Mr Warren Buffett overtaking Microsoft co-founder Mr Bill Gates and Mexican telecom honcho Mr Carlos Slim Helu, but with four Indians emerging in the top ten of the Forbes' 2008 World's Billionaires list. With a combined net worth of $160 billion, Mr Lakshmi Mittal, Mr Mukesh Ambani, Mr Anil Ambani and Mr K.P. Singh are the only Asians to have muscled their way into this coveted list. Mr Mittal, owner of the world's largest steel maker ArcelorMittal, has become the richest Indian with a net worth of $45 billion, although globally he is ranked fourth in the list prepared by Forbes magazine, which was released on Thursday. The Reliance Industries Chairman, Mr Mukesh Ambani, ($43 billion) is a notch below him at fifth rank, while younger brother Mr Anil Ambani

Ramsarup Industries declined 4.95% to Rs 163.10 at 14:41 IST on BSE even as the company said it has increased prices of steel wires in range of Rs 2500 per metric tonne to Rs 4000 per metric tonne with immediate effect. The company made this announcement during trading hours today, 7 March 2008. Meanwhile, BSE Sensex was down 686.60 points or 4.15% to 15,855.48, on weak global cues. Concerns on the political front also weighed on the market after the Communist Party of India-Marxists (CPM) on Thursday, 6 March 2008, renewed its threat on the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government saying that the ruling coalition's future depended on how it took the call on pursuing the Indo-US nuclear deal. On BSE, 18,218 shares were traded in the counter. The scrip had an average daily volume of 50,578 shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 169.85 and a low of Rs 152.70 far during the day. The stock had a 52-week high of Rs 300 on 4 January 2008 and a 52-

Larsen & Toubro Ltd (L&T) has announced that the Company has been judged as India's Best Managed Company by India's leading business magazine Business Today and its knowledge partner Ernst & Young. Mr. A M Naik, Chairman and Managing Director of L&T, received the coveted award from the Union Minister of Commerce and Industries, Mr. Kamal Nath at a glittering function held in Mumbai on March 05. The Business Today-Ernst Young study covered more than 4,900 Companies that are listed on the BSE and the NSE. They were rated on several parameters that included leadership, business & operational strategies, best practices, corporate governance, corporate social responsibility, growth, profitability, operating efficiency & wealth creation for all stakeholders. Commenting on the award Mr. Naik said, "It is a tribute to enlightened and professional management team at L&T, where empowerment and accountability are of paramount importance. In 7

GSS America Infotech was trading at Rs 471.50 at 13:13 IST on BSE a premium of 17.85% over IPO price of Rs 400.   IT solutions company GSS America Infotech debuted at its issue price of Rs 400 on BSE. The scrip touched a high of Rs 479.90 and low of Rs 400 so far during the day. The counter saw volumes over 67.32 lakh shares on BSE At the current price of Rs 471.50, the scrip trades at a PE multiple of 10.74, based on its annualised nine-month ended December 2007 EPS of Rs 43.90 GSS America Infotech had raised Rs 140 crore from primary market thorough public issue of 34.97 lakh equity shares in January 2008. The public issue was subscribed 1.08 times. It had fixed the IPO price at the lower end of the price band of Rs 400-440. GSS America Infotech plans to utilise the issue proceeds for setting up a global delivery centre at Hyderabad and meeting working capital requirement. The firm already has two global delivery centres in the US, besides Hyderabad. GSS America Infote

Tata Steel was down 0.81% to Rs 792 at 10:01 IST on BSE on reports that the company has increased steel prices due to rising input costs. On BSE, 50889 shares were traded in the counter. The scrip had an average daily volume of 6.93 lakh shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 796 and a low of Rs 785 so far during the day. The stock had a 52-week high of Rs 969.80 on 29 October 2007 and a 52-week low of Rs 352.64 on 8 March 2007. The large-cap scrip outperformed the market over the past one month till 5 March 2008, declining 2.37% compared to the Sensex's fall of 11.37%. It outperformed the market in the past one quarter, declining 5.75% compared to Sensex's decline of 16.44%. The company's current equity is Rs 730.58 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10. The current price of Rs 792 discounts its Q3 December 2007 annualized EPS of Rs 70.17 by PE multiple of 11.28. Tata Steel has reportedly increased prices of long products by Rs 1,500

Real estate major Parsvnath Developers Ltd is looking to invest between Rs 2,000-2,500 crore for the development of 40 more hotels, for which it is talking to leading domestic and international hotel chains for tie-ups. "We plan to develop 100 properties across India , of which we have already announced plans for 60 hotels. For the other 40 properties we are talking to large hotel chains for a tie up either on the basis of an operational agreement or an SPV," Pradeep Jain, Chairman, Parsvnath Developers Ltd, told Business Line. Last month, the company had announced a joint venture between its subsidiary Parsvnath Hotels Ltd (PHL) and Royal Orchid Hotels Ltd (ROHL) to develop 10 hotel projects in the next five years across India . While PHL would hold the majority stake of 70 per cent, ROHL would have 30 per cent stake in the joint venture. Royal Orchid Hotels would manage the hotels even as the joint venture company would own and develop these projects. The c

A bagful of goodies S I Team / Mumbai March 3, 2008 While many may term Budget 2008-09 as populist, the finance minister's proposals should positively impact all sections of the society, including industry and the common man.   The proposals to waive off loans would benefit four crore farmers, while the increase in the income tax slab rates would benefit another one crore individuals. Although there are no significant proposals for India Inc, they don't have a big reason to be unhappy about either. Although the demand for cut in corporate tax rate (or removal of surcharge) among many others has not been heeded, the Budget has not increased the burden in any manner.   Moreover, it has proposed a reduction in the peak excise duty from 16 per cent to 14 per cent and in central sales tax (CST) from 3 per cent to 2 per

Internet Banking safe and speedy   Technology has altered our lives and habits significantly, enabling efficiencies and facilities like never before. We book air and train tickets on the Internet and have long stopped standing in queues and depending on booking agents. We browse through our telephone bills to skim call durations for any misuse. We buy and sell equity shares on our online trading accounts, in a matter of minutes, while being tuned to the market and prices from wherever we are. We search our mail history from email folders and snigger at someone who prints emails. We cannot remember the last time we sent a snail mail. However, when it comes to our money, are we using Internet Banking for all the efficiencies it enables?   Anytime, Anywhere The ability to access our account at anytime and from anywhe

  Higher interest rates, input costs slow growth Growing demand Sector shows promise to grow as players get funds for bigger projects Demand for villas, townships, gated communities expected to grow Shortage of skilled plumbers, masons, electricians a big challenge K.V. Kurmanath   Hyderabad,  March 5   After a dream run of three years, it is time for the real estate prices in Hyderabad to mellow down. Prices, which shot up by up to 300 per cent in most areas, have started cooling off, witnessing very low growth rates or stagnation.   Several factors have contributed to this. While higher interest rates discouraged individual buyers as cost of flats went up by 50 per cent just on this count, steep rise in input costs and stricter rules shooed away the mid-level builders from the scene. This has led to a freeze on construction activity for some time.   Despite these negative factors, the sector shows promise to grow as players with muscle get funds for

Wednesday, March 5, 2008 Scores of retail chains are offering huge end-ofthe-season sales and if you visit a mall, the 'up to 50% discount' sign is the norm these days. But with the stock markets being hammered on account of global weakness, clothes aren't the only things available at half the price. Many stocks are now trading over 50% off their early-January levels. The sensex hit an intraday high of 21,206 on January 10, but has gone through a rough patch since then. On Tuesday, the index dropped by 338 points to close at 16,340, an over five-month closing low. The index has not seen this level since end-September, when an unexpected 50 basis point rate cut by the US Federal Reserve triggered a phenomenal bull run that took the index from 15K to 21K in just over four months. And now it has come nearly a full circle with the index back at low 16K levels. So is it a buying opportunity, especially for those investors who watched from the sidelines duri

Reliance Energy Ltd (REL) has informed BSE that the Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held on March 05, 2008, has approved a buy-back of its outstanding equity shares for an aggregate amount of up to approximately Rs 2,000 crore (US$ 500 million), in two phases. An amount of Rs 800 crore (US$ 200 million) will be expended in the first phase on the share buyback, pursuant to the approval granted by the Board of Directors. This amount represents 10% of the paid-up equity share capital of the Company, and its free reserves. A further amount of Rs 1,200 crore (US$ 300 million) will be expended in the second phase, subject to necessary approvals by the shareholders, in terms of the provisions of the Companies Act, 1956 and relevant SEBI Guidelines. This amount represents an additional 15% of the paid-up equity share capital of the Company, and its free reserves. REL will buy-back shares up to a maximum price of Rs 1,600, representing a premium of over 30% to the

State Trading Corporation of India jumped 5% to Rs 830.75 at 15:45 IST on BSE after gaining 10.24% in the previous two sessions on setting record date for a 1:1 bonus issue. On BSE, 17892 shares of the scrip were traded with pending buy orders for 4039 shares at the maximum limit. The stock had an average daily volume of 22541 shares on BSE in past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 830.75 and low of Rs 816 so far during the day. The scrip hit a 52-week high of Rs 1736 on 19 November 2007 and 52-week low of Rs 134 on 13 December 2006. The scrip had had outperformed the market over the past one month till 4 March 2008, declining 0.43% compared to the Sensex's fall of 12.44%. It underperformed the market in the past one quarter, declining 26.73% compared to Sensex's decline of 17.22%. The state-run trading firm has an equity capital of Rs 30 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10. Government of India holds 91.02% stake in the company (as at end December 2007

Hindalco Industries surged 5.69% to Rs 200.70 at 14:57 IST on BSE on reports it has raised aluminium prices by Rs 5,000 a tonne to match a global aluminium price rise driven by concern about production cuts in China. Meanwhile, BSE Sensex was down 139.90 points or 0.84% to 16,534.42, extending last two days' fall caused by Budget blues. Traders, domestic funds and some foreign institutional investors (FIIs) are likely to be hit by a hike in short term capital gains tax on sale of shares to 15% from 10%, which amounts to a massive 50% hike in the tax rate, in Union Budget 2008-09 announced on Friday, 29 February 2008. The change in tax treatment of the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) in the budget, meanwhile, may impact arbitrage volumes on the bourses. STT will now be treated like any other deductible expenditure against business income for the assesse. This is against the current practicse whereby an assesse gets 100% rebate for STT paid against the tax liabilit

Due to heavy solar activity, the VSAT services are likely to be disrupted from March 04, 2008 to March 18, 2008 (both days inclusive). Revised trading session timings for Equity and Derivatives Segment, March 04, 2008 to March 18, 2008 (both days inclusive) are as follows Session Start Time End Time Continuous 9 : 55 a.m. 11 : 45 a.m. No trading due to Sun Outage (only Log-in session available) 11 : 45 a.m. 12 : 30 p.m. Resumption of Continuous Session 12 : 30 p.m. 4 : 15 p.m

We are now analyzing the impact of budget on each and every Individual Sector of the Indian Economy. Automobile: Overall Expected Budget Impact: Positive Reduction in Cenvat to be applicable for Commercial vehicles (trucks, light vehicles) can be retained to absorb increase in raw material prices - Positive for Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland. Reduction in Excise duty for small cars, two and three wheelers, buses and bus body chassis to be largely passed on, but could result in higher demand - Positive for Maruti, Bajaj Auto, TVS Motors and Hero Honda in that order Banking Sector: Overall Expected Budget Impact: Neutral. Neutral / Positive: ICICI Bank, HDFC Ltd ( due to abolition of DDT on holding co structures) Govt banks if govt bears loan waiver hit . Cement: Overall Budget Impact: Negative Excise duty on bulk cement revised to 14% ad-valorem or Rs400/ton, whichever is higher. Earlier, bulk cement attracted a flat duty of Rs400/ton. Excise duty on clinker hiked to Rs450/t

The strategy to expand presence through inland container depots may help it scale up revenues. Investments with a two-three year perspective can be considered in the stock of Allcargo Global Logistics, a leading integrated logistics solution provider. The company's strengths are: presence in ports that enjoy high traffic, established relationships with major shipping lines and an expanding presence through inland container depots (ICD). Besides, wider reach and synergies in operation with ECU Line, its Belgium-based subsidiary, also lend strength to Allcargo's business model. At current market price of Rs 809, the stock trades at a reasonable 15 times its likely CY09 per share earnings. Growth potential Apart from its presence in JNPT (Mumbai), Allcargo's Chennai and Mundra CFS (container freight stations), which commenced operations in May 2007, hold significant revenue potential. For one, both the ports are expected to scale up considerable tra