Bullish mood on Lyons Range

By A Special Correspondent

CALCUTTA, FEB. 18. A highly impressive performance by Hindustan Lever with profit figures exceeding market expectations drove the all important sensex to a peak of 4462.11 points imparting a strong bullish mood to the Calcutta Stock Exchange last week enabling the CSE's 40 share index to rise to a high of 2194.40 points.

The two indices, however, reversed the trend subsequently in the wake of a sharp fall in major counters under the weight of panic selling on Friday in the final one hour that began in the software sector. They eventually closed at 4330.19 points and 2136.19 points respectively against the February 9 level of 4397.33 and 2172.52 points.

The sell off in the software group not only depressed prices in this section but had a spill over affecting most of the shares in the specified list. This depression in fact forced share prices downwards to such an extent that the substantial gains scored during Thursday's session were completely wiped out.

The cement shares, which had been in the limelight of activity in the recent past and had recorded appreciable gains, came in for repeated spells of profit taking under impact of which they surrendered moderate part of the gains. The refinery counters also dipped somewhat after initial firmness because of profit booking. But exceptionally shares of companies engaged in the manufacture of commercial vehicles such as Telco remained firm on sustained buying in anticipation of improved performance.

The fertiliser counters, which had of late assumed improved poise, also suffered a reactionary trend closing the week well below the rate prevailing at the end of the previous week.

According to a senior market operator, although the offtake on behalf of foreign institutional investors has been fairly encouraging, the domestic institutions were found to be liquidating their holdings in some counters including software for reasons best known to them. Besides, speculators who had built up fairly strong long positions rushed to unwind their positions on the last day of the week apparently induced by fund- crunch to hold on with heavy commitments on the eve of the forth- coming Union Budget. It is this development that caused the debacle in the final hour of Friday's session which left scores of shares depressed.

No doubt the budget uncertainties will cause a dip in the overall activity because of likely caution being exercised by both investors and speculators in the coming week. There is however, confident optimism among most marketmen that the budget would be market and industry friendly.

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Section  : Business
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