After witnessing hectic activity for the past one week, the trading remained sluggish. The BSE clocked a turnover of Rs 1,133.69 crore. The trading remained sluggish on the NSE as well, with a turnover of Rs 1,318.80 crore and over 7.54 crore shares changing hands.
The NSE-50 index opened weak at 1,206.35, dipped to a low of 1,194.50, touched a high of 1,215.05 before closing at 1,197.05, a loss of 9.25 points. Market sources informed that the pivotals activity remained subdued as the operators wanted to bring down the badla rates to realistic levels. Most of the activity was concentrated in the side counters as well, said a BSE dealer.
The Midcap index shed 13.50 points to close at 1,616.70 over its previous close of 1,632.20. Among the top five gainers at the NSE were, Indian Rayon, which gained over 8 per cent to close at Rs 239.10 over its previous close of Rs 221.20. Hectic activity was also witnessed in this counter on the BSE as well
Market sources said the market is due for a bigger correction which could come in any time next week. Though the undertone is still bullish, a technical correction will be good for the market, informed another NSE dealer.
The interesting aspect of yesterdays trading was that some of the pivotals moved down sharply. ITC moved down to close at Rs 770.55 over its previous close of Rs 779 on the NSE. The ACC stock also came down heavily and closed at Rs 1,518 at the BSE. It dipped to a low of Rs 1,511 during intra-day trading.
While most of the stock moved up sharply in the morning session, the counters dipped in the evening. HLL stock dipped to an intra-day low of Rs 1,591.25 before closing higher at Rs 1,612.25 on the BSE. While on the NSE, the stock touched an intra-day low of Rs 1,595 before closing higher at Rs 1,611.05. The BSE-200 and the Dollex were quoted down at 412.48 and 172.85 compared with previous close of 419.34 and 175.90 respectively.
Among the major losers were Ashok Leyland which dropped by 6.32 per cent to close lower at Rs 54.80 over its previous close of Rs 58.50. Many stocks in the A group touched their 52-week high before witnessing sharp drop towards the close of the trading session. Hero Honda was a classic case with the stock closing at Rs 1,170 before hitting an intra-day high of Rs 1235 on BSE. SBI-new moved down by 7.50 to 295, Telco by 7.80 to 282.50, Tisco by 2.40 to 162.10 and Tata Tea by 6.75 to 422.75. Castrol, however, was up by 2.75 to 709.50.
Similarly, Hindustan Motors shot up to touch its 52-week high of Rs 18.50 before closing lower at Rs 16.50 on the BSE. Meanwhile, on the NSE, the stock hit its 52-week high of Rs 18 before closing lower at Rs 16.70.
Software stocks continued the bull run making handsome gains. On the NSE, Infosys Technology moved up to close at Rs 2,093.25, a gain of over 4 per cent.
Satyam Computers moved up sharply to close at its 52-week high of Rs 411.50 on the BSE. While on the NSE, the stock touched its 52-week high of Rs 406.10 but later closed lower at Rs 406.10. Pentafour Software also flared up and closed at Rs 699 (which was also its 52-week high). Trading at this counter remained suspended on the BSE after the price hit the upper end of the price band.
Tata Chemical also witnessed smart gains and closed at Rs 178.05 over its previous close of Rs 172.15 on the NSE. In the demat segment on the NSE, the total traded value stood at Rs 5 crore.
The top Nifty gainers were Ind Rayon Rs 239.10 (Rs 221.20), IDBI Rs 104.85 (Rs 97.60), Tatachem Rs 178.05 (Rs 172.15), Hindalco Rs 756.50 (Rs 736.25) and Grasim Rs 338.30 (Rs 333.50). While the major losers were Ashok Ley Rs 54.80 (Rs 58.50), Arvind Mills Rs 81.95 (Rs 86.75), Relpetro Rs 24.85 (Rs 26.05) Indogulf Rs 48.05 (Rs 49.85) and Orientbank Rs 75.90 (Rs 78.45).
Meanwhile, share prices rose smartly on the Over the Counter Exchange of
India (Otcei) on good speculative buying. The Otcei index opened at 106.10 points and rose to close at 108.17, a gain of 2.07 points over the previous close of 106.10. The market clocked a total turnover of
Rs 26.23 lakh during the day of which listed securities contributed Rs 17.01 lakh and permitted securities Rs 9.22 lakh.
