Reverses again

STOCKS REPORT

Lack of buying was evident as the market closed in negative territory on Tuesday. Trading below the breakeven for the entire session, the benchmark Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex closed lower after recording four straight sessions of gains but volumes remained low, brokers said.

Technology, metal, capital goods and auto counters were among the biggest losers on Tuesday while select FMCG and consumer durables scrips recorded some gains.

Selling in blue chips was seen as the Sensex hit a high of 6377.54 and a low of 6323.32 in intra-day trades before finally closing at 6339.98 points, down 37.87 points (0.59 per cent) from its previous close.

Among frontline counters, 20 out of the 30-scrip Sensex basket closed higher. The breadth of the market was also negative with losers outpacing gainers 12:11 in the BSE. Volumes were marginally lower than on Monday with a turnover of Rs 1,721.70 crore recorded on the BSE and Rs 3,620.78 crore on the NSE.

A fund manager with a domestic mutual fund said, "Some nervousness is evident after the recent sharp fall and investors are not taking big buy calls as they await a clear direction or trend in the market. The imminent expiry of the current month's futures contracts is also expected to lead to some volatility."

Brokers said the results season has not given the much awaited impetus yet and players are hoping that strong FII buying will continue.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers of Indian shares worth Rs 12.90 crore on Monday while domestic mutual funds were net buyers to the tune of Rs 54.40 crore.

Tata Motors was the biggest loser in the Sensex basket, falling by 2.32 per cent to close at Rs 434.30, L&T fell by 2.09 per cent to Rs 975.50, Maruti Udyog was down 1.80 per cent to Rs 431.10, Satyam was down 1.75 per cent to Rs 415.80 and ONGC was down 1.68 per cent to Rs 847.75.

HLL was the biggest gainer in the Sensex basket, rising 3.22 per cent to close at Rs 137.95, BHEL was up 1.72 per cent to Rs 826.75, Dr Reddy's gained 0.93 per cent to Rs 666.25, Bajaj Auto was up 0.70 per cent to Rs 1,082.90 and Grasim gained 0.68 per cent to Rs 1,219.40.