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Market stays firm amid volatile trade

MUMBAI - Firm US and European markets infused confidence in investors' moods even as pivotals remained volatile as futures & options contracts for July series expired on Thursday. However, the market breadth turned negative from earlier strong breadth.

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Crude oil surged by more than $4 a barrel. Investors took comfort seeing US markets surged on Wednesday, after encouraging jobs data and the central bank's attempts at boosting liquidity in the financial markets offset a surge in oil prices. European markets which opened after Indian market were positive. However, Asian markets were trading mixed on Thursday . On the New York Mercantile Exchange, September 2008 crude surged $4.58, or 3.75 per cent, to $126.77 a barrel yesterday, after data showed a surprise drawdown in gasoline stocks last week. Back home, banking shares were mixed ahead of the inflation data for 12 months to July 19 to be released after trading hours on Thursday. Metal stocks gained. Healthcare and IT stocks fell.

The 30-share BSE Sensitive Index (Sensex) opened with a positive gap of 72 points at 14,359, but soon slipped into the negative zone owing to nervousness ahead of derivatives expiry of the July series. The Sensex exhibited lacklustre movement for most part of the trading day. After touching a low of 14,162, the Sensex rebounded into the positive zone and touched a high of 14,370 - up 208 points from the day's low. The Sensex finally ended with a gain of 69 points at 14,356. The NSE Nifty moved up 19 points to settle at 4,333. Nifty August futures were at 4337, at a premium of 4.05 points as compared to spot closing of 4332.95. The BSE clocked the turnover of Rs50.91 billion from Rs53.54 billion on Wednesday. NSE's futures & options segment turnover was Rs646.4 billion from Rs585.44 billion on Wednesday. The market breadth was almost neutral - out of 2,697 stocks traded, 1,296 advanced, 1,326 declined and 75 were unchanged. Among the 30-member Sensex pack, 16 gained, 13 declined and 1 share was unchanged. Tata Power and Tata Steel surged 4 per cent each to Rs1,160 and Rs655, respectively. DLF rallied 3.8 per cent to Rs509. SBI and Reliance Inds gained 2 per cent each at Rs1,415 and Rs2,206, respectively. Sterlite advanced 1.5 per cent to Rs632. Mahindra & Mahindra and Ranbaxy moved up 1.3 per cent each to Rs521 and Rs499, respectively. Among the losers of the day, Tata Motors slipped over 3 per cent to Rs403. Grasim shed 2.8 per cent at Rs1,800. Maruti dropped 2.3 per cent to Rs575. Wipro and Bharti Airtel slipped around 1.5 per cent each to Rs416 and Rs799, respectively. ACC and Infosys were down over 1 per cent each at Rs584 and Rs1,583, respectively.

Corporate news scenario: Tata Motors lost 3.13 per cent to Rs403.25 after the company reported 30.10 per cent fall in net profit to Rs3.26 billion on a 14.40 per cent rise in net sales to Rs69.28 billion in Q1 June 2008 over Q1 June 2007. The company announced the results during trading hours yeserday, when the stock had risen 4.91 per cent to Rs416.30. ITC was flat at Rs187.80. After market hours yesterday, the company reported 4 per cent drop in net profit at Rs7.49 billion on a 18 per cent growth in net turnover to Rs39 billion in Q1 June 2008 over Q1 June 2007. The drop in net profit was attributed to the increase in excise duties on non-filter cigarettes in the Union Budget 2008, steep rise in commodity prices and store rentals.

Reliance Natural Resources topped the value chart with a turnover of Rs3.7 billion followed by Reliance Capital (Rs3.45 bn), Reliance Inds (Rs1.83 bn), Tata Steel (Rs1.63 bn) and SEL Manufacturing (Rs1.51 bn). Reliance Natural Resources also led the volume chart with trades of around 37.3 million shares followed by Birla Cotsyn (18 mn), Ispat Industries (13.1 mn), Kashyap Technologies (8.84 mn) and Chambal Fertilisers (8.32 mn shares).

The BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.24 per cent to 5,567.37 and BSE Small-Cap index declined 0.21 per cent to 6,912.79. Both these indices underperformed Sensex. BSE Metal index (up 1.68 per cent to 12,912.61), BSE Oil & Gas (up 1.27 per cent to 9,729.48), BSE Power index (up 0.78 per cent to 2,574.27), BSE Realty index (up 0.74 per cent to 5,079.01), BSE Consumer Durables index (up 0.73 per cent to 3,685.84), BSE Capital Goods index (up 0.48 per cent to 11,683.80) outperformed Sensex.

IT stocks receded back. Infosys (down 1.2 per cent to Rs1,583.30), TCS (down 0.72 per cent to Rs832.55) and Wipro (down 1.53 per cent to Rs416) edged lower. Satyam was flat at Rs380.30.

Healthcare stocks fared mixed. Cipla (down 0.61 per cent to Rs218.70), Dr Reddy's Laboratories (down 2.78 per cent to Rs569.20), Wochardt (down 2.48 per cent to Rs186.85) edged lower. However, Ranbaxy was up 1.29 per cent to Rs439.10.

Metal stocks firmed up. Hindalco Industries (up 0.68 per cent to Rs141.10), Steel Authority of India (up 3.42 per cent to Rs140.70), Sterlite Industries (up 1.5 per cent to Rs631.80) and Tata Steel (up 3.95 per cent to Rs654.95) edged higher.

Banking shares were mixed ahead of the weekly inflation data, to be released after market hours today. ICICI Bank declined 0.07 per cent to Rs634.85. SBI rallied 2.03 per cent to Rs1,414.75.