Sensex dips 37 points

STOCK REPORT

Key indices ended marginally lower in choppy trade on Friday. The BSE Sensex touched the day's low of 8410.69 points and a high of 8586.43.

Dealers attributed the weakness to profit-booking. Investors were also reluctant to carry forward positions over the weekend. Hindustan Lever, up 2.8 per cent, was the top Nifty gainer.

The Bombay Stock Exchange's 30-share Sensex closed at 8491.56 today, down 37.14 points, or 0.4 per cent, from Thursday.

The National Stock Exchange's 50-share Nifty ended at 2574.05, down 5.10 points, or 0.2 per cent. It had registered an intra-day low of 2547.55 and a high of 2603.25. Videsh Sanchar Nigam, down over 4 per cent, was the major Nifty loser.

In other major Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei, down 1 per cent, was the biggest loser. Singapore's Straits Times Index, up 0.7 per cent, was the top gainer. Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended slightly up. South Korea's Kospi and Taiwan's Taiex registered minor losses.

Traded turnover on the BSE and NSE combined was around Rs 103 billion, compared with around Rs 106 billion on Thursday. On the BSE, bears pinned down bulls yet again, which was evident from the advance to decline ratio at 838:1,674. Around 66 per cent of large-cap shares fell, while 63 per cent of mid-caps closed lower.

"There was thin trade due to cautious investors booking profits at every opportunity. Investors also refrained from taking positions over the weekend amid this uncertainty," said Devang Shah, vice president, institutional sales, at Sushil Finance Consultants.

"Although the long-term bullish view remains intact, markets are likely to trade in the similar fashion in near term. I expect volatility to continue in near term. The next trigger would be the earnings announcement starting next week. Infosys' results would be a major determinant of the immediate trend," he said.

Shah said the Sensex has key support at the 8430-level and faces immediate resistance at 8902.

On the Nifty, apart from HLL, Tata Power, Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Dabur India and Colgate-Palmolive (India) shares were up around 2 per cent.

Tata Consultancy Services, Bharti Tele-Ventures, Hindalco Industries, Zee Telefilms, Ranbaxy Laboratories, and Oil and Natural Gas Corp shares were up around 1 per cent each.

Among Nifty losers, Cipla, Mahindra & Mahindra, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam, Tata Steel, Bharat Petroleum Corp., Hero Honda, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Tata Motors and Associated Cement Cos. were down 2-3 per cent.

Sectorwise, fast moving consumer goods outperformed the market. Bank, cement and automobile shares were among the major losers.

Among second-rung indices, the CNX IT Index ended 0.2 per cent lower. The CNX Bank Index also underperformed, clocking a loss of over 1 per cent.

The CNX Midcap Index ended 0.6 per cent lower at 3805.80. The index had started off on a firm note in early trade, touching a high of 3870.95.

Indiabulls Financial Services, up 6.2 per cent, was the major gainer in the CNX Midcap. Pantaloon Retail, down 3.3 per cent, was the biggest loser in the index.