MFs plans schemes to woo PF amounts
Kolkata: The labour ministry's notification about the revised investment pattern for provident funds is all set to transform the way gilt funds are marketed in India, reports suggest. Mutual funds are already using it to reintroduce their schemes to PF managers, with the hope of garnering larger sums from the latter. The labour ministry's move, which complements a similar stance adopted by the finance ministry earlier, is in exercise of the powers conferred by the relevant provisions of the Employees' Provident Funds Scheme, 1952.

It prompts the government to direct that all incremental accretions belonging to the Fund will be invested in a certain manner, which fund houses now find encouraging. The asset management industry is of the opinion that PFs will henceforth take up the issue of investment in gilt funds more seriously. Not too many PFs, especially the smaller ones, have professional money managers working for them, and this is where MFs can make a difference, it was felt.
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SEBI probing steel share price movements
Mumbai: The Securities and Exchange Board of India has launched an investigation into the `unusual' price movement of shares of about half dozen steel companies, including that of Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), over the past few days. According to sources, the regulator has asked stock exchanges to find out whether any of these companies or its officials has violated listing agreements and whether there was concentrated trading in the shares. When contacted, T.M. Nagarajan, Member of the Board, said the regulator is keeping a close watch on the market movements but cautioned against irrational exuberance. "In the context of sharp and swift movement in the (stock) market, SEBI is keeping a close watch over price-sensitive statements being made (by company officials) in the electronic and other media. Any violation of listing agreements or price manipulation will be severely dealt with in the larger interest of market integrity. Small investors should be careful and not get carried away by hype and exuberance," Mr Nagarajan said.
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FII investments to touch an all-time high
Mumbai: Investments by foreign institutional investors (FIIs) in calendar year 2003 are all set to touch an all-time high of $3.06 billion. Net FII inflows in 2003 stand at $2.94 billion, just about $100 million shy of the high of 1996. Since its advent into the Indian markets 11 years ago, FII investments stand at $18.2 billion. Going by the pace at which FII funds have come in over the past four months, a new high may well beckon when the FII-flows data for this week is put out over the weekend or early next week, newspaper reports say.

In a trend that has been good for stock prices, the magnitude of FII inflows in the subsequent months has moved to a higher scale. However, there is a big difference compared to 1996. Then, all the funds that came in went into equities, analysts were quoted as saying. It also turned to be a rather indifferent year for stocks. But in 2003, 27 per cent of the net FII inflows ($787 million) went into Indian debt.
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SEBI to refer to NSE on dabba trader's issue
Kolkata: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) will place before the National Stock Exchange the issue of extension of an unauthorised trading terminal by GCM Securities Ltd, an NSE member, to Sunil Kumar Kayan, the member of the Calcutta Stock Exchange, who has been debarred from dealing in securities.

The proposed SEBI move will follow its crackdown on dabba trading in Kolkata, especially on Kayan, who in recent times have often branded himself as one of the pioneers of such trading activity, says a report. The unauthorised terminal provided to him by GCM Securities was being used in his Lyons Range office. The regulator's order against Kayan, based on an inspection carried out on August 14, makes it clear that the issue may well be referred to NSE for "necessary action under their bye-laws".
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Rupee loses 2 paise
Mumbai: The rupee closed at 45.8450/8550 per dollar in the forex market on Thursday, around 2 paise weaker compared to Wednesday's close of 45.8250. Dealers said the domestic currency opened at 45.84/85 and slipped to an intra-day low of 45.87, due to State-run banks mopping up surplus dollars at the RBI's behest.
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