Lesser counters to the fore in first half

NSE Midcap-200 posted 24.32 per cent gains, while B2 stocks up 44 per cent

The first half of 2003-04 definitely belonged to the small and mid-cap stocks.

While frontline stocks reeled under the onslaught of some piece of bad news or the other, it was the small and mid-cap stocks that saved the overall markets from a total collapse.

The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex and the National stock Exchange's S&P CNX Nifty closed one per cent down at the end of the first half of the current fiscal, but the NSE Midcap-200 posted gains of 24.32 per cent.

On the BSE, B1 group stocks gained 27 per cent in the first six months and B2 group stocks posted a higher gain of 44 per cent.

The rally influenced the T & Z group stocks too, pulling them up 40 per cent in the last six months.

During the period, the Sensex has remained unchanged to 5583.61 on Friday from 5590.60 six months back.

But despite this lack of investor interest in large cap and index stocks in the last six months, the total market capitalisation of the BSE increased by Rs 38,495 crore from Rs 11,89,735 crore to Rs 12,28,230 crore as on September 30, 2004.

As a result of the investor interest in mid-cap and penny stocks, gainers outnumbered losers in the ratio of 8.5:1. This means, of the 1,812 actively traded stocks, 1,526 posted gains while only 286 stocks lost ground in the first half.

Investors, however, have lost money in Sensex stocks, which has declined 0.13 per cent.

The S&P CNX Nifty fell by 1.49 per cent. The major losers in the elections blues were public sector and bank stocks. The BSE PSU index has lost 9.28 per cent between April 1 and September 30, 2004, while the BSE Bankex was 9.15 per cent lower. As against this, as many as 317 small and penny stocks posted an appreciation of over 100 per cent each.

Arrow Webtex, which was available at Rs 2.13 as on March 31, 2004 appreciated to Rs 28.20 on September 30, 2004, posting an astonishing 1,224 per cent rise in the last six months.

FCGL Industries gained 701 per cent from Rs 2.06 to Rs 16.51, Indo Borex and Chemicals was up 600 per cent from 2.50 to Rs 17.60 and ICSA India gained 587 per cent from Rs 8.11 to Rs 55.75.

Within the Sensex basket, HPCl, Maruti Udyog, Dr Reddy's Laboratories and SBI stocks have declined by over 20 per cent each.

But Infosys Technologies, Wipro, Satyam Computer and Cipla have posted gains of over 20 per cent each.

Coming to sectors, information technology, pharmaceuticals, steel, engineering, cement, cigarettes, cotton textile and shipping were the major wealth creators in the first half, while refineries, banks, personal care products, automobiles, power and telecommunication stocks were major losers.

The information technology sector was the biggest wealth creator, with the total market capitalisation of the sector increasing by 29 per cent (Rs 31,143 crore) from Rs 1,07,544 crore to Rs 1,38,687 crore over the last six months.

The pharmaceuticals sector was the second-largest gainer in value terms, with the aggregate market capitalisation increasing by Rs 13,289 crore, from Rs 76,152 crore to Rs 89,441 crore.

The other prominent sectors in the gainers' league include companies in the composite steel and steel alloys sectors, which increased their aggregate market capitalisation by Rs 8,965 crore to Rs 38,266 crore, engineering Rs 4,581 crore (Rs 17,024 crore), cement Rs 2,671 crore (Rs 16,426 crore), cigarettes Rs 2,478 crore (Rs 28,987 crore ), cotton textile Rs 2,112 crore (Rs 5,624 crore) and term lending finance companies Rs 2,142 crore to Rs 6,634 crore.