Blue chips under strain

STOCKS REPORT

Pharmaceutical and automobile scrips were in the limelight on Friday even as profit taking continued to plague the market with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex hitting an intra-day high of 5575.40 and a low of 5513.68, before closing at 5527.75, down 0.21 per cent.

The BSE IT Index was the biggest loser, down 0.82 per cent, the TECk Index fell 0.74 per cent and the FMCG Index fell 0.42 per cent.

The BSE Consumer Durables Index was the biggest gainer, up 2.08 per cent, followed by the Healthcare Index, up 1.25 per cent and the Capital Goods Index was up 0.79 per cent.

Blue chips witnessed selling pressure but losses were capped as 16 out of the 30 Sensex shares closed lower.

The broader markets were positive.

Gainers outpaced losers in the 3:2 ratio on the BSE.

Brokers said profit taking was expected after the markets had run up in the last few days, adding that the undertone was upbeat on the back of sustained foreign fund inflows and investors were optimistic.

Worries about firm global oil prices was also attributed for Friday's fall.

A dealer from a local brokerage said, "The Gujarat government public sector units recorded gains on reports that the state government has identified several companies for restructuring, by way of privatisation, merger and closedown."

Bajaj Auto was the biggest gainer in the Sensex basket, gaining 2.15 per cent to Rs 991.75, followed by Cipla up 1.67 per cent to Rs 286.05, Maruti Udyog up 1.57 per cent to Rs 368.70, ICICI Bank up 1.37 per cent to Rs 292.30 and Tata Power up 1.17 per cent to Rs 314.60.

Gujarat Ambuja Cements was the biggest loser among Sensex stocks, falling 2.18 per cent to Rs 335.95, followed by Wipro down 1.85 per cent to Rs 582.15, Zee Telefilms down 1.83 per cent to Rs 149.90, Grasim down 1.78 per cent to Rs 1119.80 and HDFC down 1.61 per cent to Rs 614.65.

Turnover was lower in the cash segment. The BSE reported a turnover of Rs 1,929.42 crore and the National Stock Exchange reported a turnover of Rs 4,068.23 crore.

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers of Indian shares worth Rs 146.50 crore on Thursday, while domestic mutual funds were net sellers to the tune of Rs 23.60 crore.