Market Commentaries-08/03/2008

Sensex at 6-month closing low

A surge in inflation, weak global cues and political concerns dampened the investor sentiments today as share prices declined sharply. All the sectoral indices on BSE were in the red. Reliance Energy was the biggest loser from the Sensex pack. Banking stocks tumbled. European markets, which opened after Indian market, were weak.

The 30-share BSE Sensex plunged 566.56 points or 3.42% at 15,975.52, its lowest closing since 18 September 2007. The index had shaved off 852.16 points at the session’s low of 15,689.92, hit in afternoon trade.

The broader CNX S&P Nifty was down 149.80 points or 3.04% at 4771.60.

Market News-07/03/2008

Steel prices hiked by 10%
Steel producers have pushed up prices yet again by almost 10% — despite the government’s call against price hikes. Integrated steel makers increased the price of benchmark hot rolled coils (HR coils) between Rs 1,500 per tonne and Rs 3,500 per tonne (5%-10%) on account of rising iron ore, coking coal and energy prices. The hike would take the domestic HR prices to over Rs 33,000 per tonne.
KEC to acquire US power firm
The RPG group-promoted KEC International, one of the largest power sector erection, procurement and construction (EPC) majors in the world, will soon acquire a mid-sized power sector EPC player in the US. The company has identified a few targets and hopes to complete the transaction in a few months, according to Ramesh Chandak, managing director and CEO, KEC International. He added that the targeted company would be a transmission line construction
company.
BPCL may process 9.5 pct less crude in 08/09
Bharat Petroleum Corp's is likely to process 9.5 percent less crude at its two key refineries in the next fiscal year beginning April compared with this year, due to planned shutdowns. Shutdown at Kochi refinery would be to raise capacity and at Mumbai will be a maintenance shutdown. BPCL runs a 240,000-bpd refinery in Mumbai, and another 150,000-bpd refinery in Kochi in the southern state of Kerala. Its subsidiary, Numaligarh Refinery Ltd, runs a 60,000-bpd refinery in northeast India, where processing depends on crude availability.

U.S. stocks shatter, Dow loses 215 points, Nasdaq 52

Traders on Wall Street continued to sell stocks Thursday, driving the major indices to major new lows.

Adding heat to the fire was a report by the U.S. Mortgage Bankers Association released on Thursday, which showed home foreclosures at their highest level in more than twenty years.

At the close of trading the Dow Jones Industrials were down a hefty 214.60 points or 1.75% at 12,040.39.

The tech-laden Nasdaq Composite was off 52.31 points or 2.30% at 2,220.50.

The Standard and Poor's 500 was down 29.35 points or 2.20% at 1,304.35.

U.S. home foreclosures rose to record highs in the December quarter, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Thursday. The number of foreclosures was higher than at any time since 1985.

The Labor Department also released data Thursday indicating the number of workers on jobless benefits remains at a two-and-a-half year high.

The U.S. dollar meantime sold off again. The euro reached new highs Thursday. At last call it was trading at 1.5388 around the New York close.

The British pound rallied to 2.0108, while the Swiss franc climbed to a three-year-high of 1.0216.

The Japanese yen rose to 102.57, while the Australian dollar was off sharply at .9252.

The Canadian dollar was little changed at .9868.