Industrial data spoils market's morning cheer

Sensex ends flat after advancing 3.5 per cent.

Stocks pared gains and ended little changed after data showed industrial production growth unexpectedly slowed in January as higher interest rates curbed demand for cars and other consumer goods.

Tata Steel, India's largest steelmaker, fell the most in seven weeks after Morgan Stanley said third-quarter profit at the company's UK unit was below estimates.

State Bank of India, the largest bank by assets, dropped the most in more than a week, as financial stocks retreated from earlier gains on concern credit growth may slow if industrial output turns sluggish.

"The market is jittery because you are seeing a slowdown in growth on supply constraints and suddenly things are not as rosy as they were six months ago," said R Balakrishnan, executive director at Mumbai-based Centrum Broking.

Production at Indian factories, utilities and mines rose 5.3 per cent in January from a year earlier after gaining a revised 7.7 per cent in December, the statistics office said in New Delhi on Wednesday. Economists were expecting an 8 per cent increase.

The Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensitive Index, or Sensex, rose 4.83, or less than 0.1 per cent, to 16,127.98, after advancing as much as 3.5 per cent as it extended a global rally. 
 

Sensex top gainers
Share Price in Rs	Mar 12, '08	% Chg*
Cipla	204.15	4.26
Grasim Ind.	2,892.55	3.69
Reliance Energy	1,328.30	3.19
ICICI Bank	879.90	2.98
Bharti Airtel	810.65	2.73
Sensex top losers
Tata Steel	766.45	-6.42
Hindalco	191.80	-5.47
DLF	712.70	-4.86
SBI	1,807.90	-4.38
Satyam Comp	379.25	-4.19
* over previous close

Asian stocks rose after the US Federal Reserve said it will pour as much as $200 billion into the financial system to revive lending among banks.

State Bank of India fell Rs 82.9, or 4.4 per cent, to 1,807.90 after rising as much as 3.2 per cent. Tata Steel declined Rs 52.6, or 6.4 per cent, to 766.45, its steepest percentage fall since January 22.