Heavy selling in equity markets across the globe affected the Indian bourses also and the frontline indices continued their week trend of last 2 weeks. Further decline in the value of the Rupee against the US Dollar added to weakness.

The US markets had closed on a weak note yesterday and Asian markets were in a sea of red today. Most Asian indices lost between 1 and 2 per cent and a few of them lost more than 2 per cent in today's trade. Worries about rising global interest rates and its negative impact on economic growth are unnerving stock markets across the world.

The indices opened with a negative gap and the indices had lost more than one-and-a-half per cent each within half an hour. Reports of heavy purchases by FII's in the futures segment yesterday and a recovery in Rupee value helped the indices to stage a partial recovery by noon.

More selling emerged by early afternoon and the indices were on a downward spiral for the rest of the day. The Sensex was trading with losses of over 190 points by late afternoon before a last minute recovery helped the indices to recover.

ONGC was among the major index losers. The stock witnessed a major sell off in afternoon trades and declined close to 5 per cent by late afternoon. The stock recovered in the last half hour and closed the day with losses of over three per cent.

Reliance Industries lost over a per cent while group company IPCL gave up well over 3 per cent.

Among the other oil stocks, Indian Oil lost almost 3 per cent while BPCL declined close to 3 per cent. HPCL rallied over 2 per cent by early afternoon before giving up all the gains in late afternoon trades. The stock closed a per cent lower.

Steel stocks were among the worst affected in today's trade. SAIL lost another 5 per cent while Tata Steel declined well over 3 per cent. The second rung steel stocks like Essar Steel, Ispat Industries and JSW Steel also saw substantial losses.

FMCG stocks remained weak throughout the day. HLL lost close to 4 per cent while ITC lost well over 3 per cent.

Technology stocks tried to hold on and some of them rallied by noon. Wipro, which declared its results today, and Satyam were trading with decent gains by noon. However, all of them gave up their gains and declined in afternoon trades. TCS lost well over 2 per cent and was the biggest loser among tech stocks. Wipro lost over a per cent while Infosys lost over half-a-per cent.

Satyam managed a late recovery and closed almost a per cent higher. HCL tech also closed half a per cent higher.

Pharma stocks continued their decline today as well. Dr. Reddy gave up more than 5 per cent by late afternoon before recovering and closing with losses of over 4 per cent. Ranbaxy lost over 2 per cent. Cipla lost over 3 per cent.

Auto stocks also did not fare any better. Tata Motors made a smart recovery from early weakness and was trading with gains by noon. The stock declined in afternoon and closed almost 2 per cent lower. Maruti lost well over 2 per cent. M&M closed almost flat.

Among the 2-wheeler stocks, Hero Honda was the big loser closing almost 4 per cent lower. Bajaj Auto gave up a per cent.
Banking stocks had a mixed day today. SBI recovered most of the early losses by early afternoon before declining once again and closing more than 2 per cent lower. Among the private sector banks, ICICI Bank recovered from early weakness and closed marginally higher. HDFC Bank declined over a per cent.

Sensex closed at 7971, a decline of 151 points, and the Nifty at 2412, lower by 56 points. Nifty October futures closed at a premium of 2 points to the spot index.

Dabur, Satyam and Glaxo were the few gainers among Nifty stocks while VSNL, SAIL and Dr. Reddy were the major losers.

US markets resumed their downtrend yesterday after 2 days of gains. Inflation worries resurfaced after a government report showed a rise in producer prices. The broad indices were affected by a 4 per cent drop in Exxon-Mobil, the world's most valuable company. Weakness was seen in auto stocks like GM and Ford.

The Dow lost over half a per cent while the S&P 500 lost a per cent yesterday. NASDAQ closed more than two thirds of a per cent lower.

Crude oil futures declined close to 2 per cent yesterday on reports that the tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico may miss the oil production facilities. Crude futures for November delivery lost $1.16 per barrel to close at $63.20 yesterday. The commodity is trading with marginal gains at $63.3 per barrel in early European trades today.

After encouraging results from TCS and Infosys, Wipro also announced excellent quarterly results today. Though the numbers were not as good as TCS and Infosys, they met market expectations.

Wipro's consolidated quarterly revenues rose close to 30 per cent to Rs2,255 crore for the quarter as against Rs1,744 crore during the previous year. Consolidated profits for the quarter at Rs453 crore were higher by close to 20 per cent as compared to the pervious year figure of Rs370 crore.

Second quarter profits of Wipro were higher by 10 per cent as compared to the first quarter profits of Rs405 crore. Revenues for the quarter were higher by close to 10 per cent as compared to the first quarter figure of Rs2,027 crore.

Tata Power reported a net profit of Rs126 crore for the quarter ended September, a decline of 11 per cent from the same quarter of previous year. Revenues for the quarter were higher by 4 per cent at Rs1,104 crore as against Rs1,039 crore during the previous year. The profit figures are not comparable as the last year numbers include a one time profit from the sale of assets.

Gujarat Ambuja Cements reported a 7 per cent rise in quarterly profits for the period ended September. Consolidated profits for the quarter were at Rs108 crore as against Rs107 reported during the previous year. Revenues for the quarter were lower at Rs677 crore as against Rs730 crore during the previous year.

Gujarat Ambuja management said volumes during the quarter were lower because of the heavy rains in the western parts of the country. Exports were also affected because of the rough seas. The company is hopeful of a strong export performance during the remaining quarters. The results are not strictly comparable with previous year's numbers as some of the subsidiary companies ceased to be subsidiaries during the quarter.

HCL Infosystems has reported a profit of Rs62 crore for the quarter ended September as against Rs43 crore, an increase of 44 per cent. Total revenues for the quarter were at Rs2,288 crore as against Rs1,574 crore during the previous year. The company is one of the largest players in computer hardware.

Newspaper reports suggest that UK based Barclays Bank may not renew its outsourcing deal with TCS. The British bank is reportedly planning to give the order to Intelenet, a BPO firm set up jointly by Barclays and HDFC. The value of the contract is reported at Rs50 crore per year.

Mid-Cap Action

Mid-caps came tumbling down today as most of the stocks faced major sell offs and lost considerable ground. At one point the mid-cap index was down more than 3 per cent. The CNX Mid-Cap index lost 102 points and closed the day at 3539, a loss of close to 3 per cent.

Suzlon Energy listed on the bourses today after its recent IPO and the weak trend in the markets did not stop the stock from doing well on listing day. Issued at Rs510, the stock opened at Rs639 on the NSE and went on to touch a high of Rs698. The stock closed at Rs693, a listing day gain of 36 per cent.

Pharma company Wockardt reported a consolidated net profit of Rs66 crore for the quarter ended September as against Rs56 crore during the previous year, an increase of close to 20 per cent. Total revenues were higher by close to 15 per cent at Rs362 crore.

Lupin has reported a profit of Rs45 crore for the quarter ended September as against Rs17.5 crore reported during the previous year. Total revenues for the quarter were higher by over 35 per cent at Rs414 crore. The company's board has approved a proposal to raise $100 million from an FCCB issue.

Pharma company Biocon reported a profit of Rs44 crore for the quarter ended September. The company has been facing substantial drop in product prices for the last few quarters in overseas markets. The management is confident that prices have bottomed out and are also confident about the new products being developed.

Max Telecom Holdings, 61 per cent held by Max India, has sold its remaining shareholding of 3.16 per cent in mobile telecom operator Hutchison Essar to Essar Teleholdings. The deal has been concluded at Rs657 crore. Max India would realise around Rs400 crore from the deal. Max India gained 2 per cent today.

NEPC India has sold its wind energy division for over Rs150 crore. The company would be left with only a small amount after settling its liabilities. The company's future is not clear as fabrication of wind turbines has been its major business. The stock has been on a steady decline over the last couple of weeks.

The board of Noida Toll Bridge has approved the rights issue in the ratio of 1 share for every 5 shares held at a price band of between Rs17 and Rs20 per share.

The board of Mahavir Spinning has approved a proposal to raise $50 million from an FCCB issue.

Crompton Greaves, Williamson Magor and Ruchi Infrastructure were among the significant mid-cap gainers on the NSE.

Media Video, Bombay Dyeing and Sakhti Sugar were among the significant mid-cap losers on the NSE.

*Disclaimer: The author may have positions in some of the stocks specifically mentioned above at the time of writing this article. This analysis / report is only for the purpose of information and is not an investment advice. Readers are advised to consult a certified financial advisor before taking any investment decisions. While efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of the information provided in the content the author or publisher shall not be held responsible for any loss caused to any person whatsoever.

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