Oil prices breather

STOCKS REPORT

Technology, pharmaceutical, automobile and metal stocks were in the limelight on Thursday as the market reacted positively to the easing of international oil prices and strong economic growth data.

The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex hit an intra-day high of 5,598.55 and a low of 5,545.26 points, before closing at 5,583.61, up 1.01 per cent (56.05 points) from Wednesday's close.

Blue chip stocks were again in the focus, with 22 out of the 30 Sensex stocks closing higher. The broader markets was also positive with gainers outpacing losers in the 3:2 ratio on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

The BSE TECk Index was the biggest gainer, up 2.44 per cent, followed by the IT index, up 2.04 per cent, healthcare index up 1.46 per cent, auto index up 1.33 per cent and the metal index up 1.05 per cent. The BSE Bankex fell 0.23 per cent.

Brokers said investors are buying blue chip stocks in anticipation of strong earnings for the July-September quarter.

Brokers said that a positive undertone and smooth roll-over in the derivatives market forced bears to cover short positions on the day of expiry of the futures, pushing up the market.

A dealer at a local brokerage said, "A lot of short positions got unwound, which also helped the uptrend."

He added that while declining oil prices helped the sentiment, a stronger-than-expected gross domestic product growth in the April-June period also helped.

Bharti Tele-Ventures was the biggest gainer in the Sensex basket, up 4.13 per cent to Rs 146.10, followed by Cipla, up 3.73 per cent to Rs 296.05, Bajaj Auto gained 3.42 per cent to Rs 1024.65, Infosys Technologies gained 3.38 per cent to Rs 1695.20 and Hero Honda gained 2.64 per cent to Rs 447.90.

The State Bank of India scrip was the biggest loser in the Sensex basket, down 1 per cent to Rs 468.20, followed by HPCL, down 0.77 per cent to Rs 316.25, ICICI Bank fell 0.69 per cent to Rs 286.05, Reliance Energy fell 0.61 per cent to Rs 632.50 and Maruti Udyog was down 0.56 per cent to Rs 354.30.

The turnover was higher than on Wednesday in the cash segment of the bourses. The BSE reported a turnover of Rs 2,173.57 crore and the National Stock Exchange posted a turnover of Rs 5,144.77 crore.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers of Indian shares worth Rs 107 crore on Wednesday, while domestic mutual funds were net sellers to the tune of Rs 46.90 crore.