Alagappan Arunachalam

BEARS appeared to be all-round the market place aided by a computation error on the NSE. Sharp declines in the Asian markets and a weakening rupee appeared to have furthered their cause. In the early hours the S&P CNX Nifty down by more than 3 per cent supposedly on a computation error.

The BSE Sensex opened on a weak note lower by about 20 points and continued to trade in the negative territory throughout the day. The index dropping by about 150 points in intra-day trade threatened to break below the 9150-mark.

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However, a recovery in the wee hours of the trading session helped the index up by 75 points to close with a modest drop of 0.82 per cent. The Nifty moving on similar lines closed lower by 0.7 per cent.

Though the bellwether indices managed to close with modest declines, small-cap and mid-cap indices declined sharply accompanied by sector-oriented indices.

The oil and gas sector index on the BSE opened on a weak note and continued to trade in the negative territory throughout the session. The index eventually closed lower by 2.1 per cent. Eight stocks constituting the index declined as against two that registered gains.

Major losers were Dolphin Offshore, BOC India, Essar Oil, Castrol India, CPCL and Kochi Refineries. GAIL and MRPL were among the few that bucked the trend.

Across the board declines were registered in the banking sector, which were among the major losers. The BSE Bankex continued its losing streak declining by 1.3 per cent. The index has lost about 200 points since January 10.

Prominent losers included Oriental Bank of Commerce, Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, HDFC Bank, Karnataka Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Union Bank and Vijaya Bank.

Canara Bank supported by intense trading activity stuck its neck out gaining marginally by 0.36 per cent to close at Rs 224.6. Andhra Bank and Bank of Baroda, which have come out with fresh offers, also declined.

Widespread declines were also registered in the FMCG sector including tobacco and alcohol stocks. Nippo Batteries, Champagne Industries, Radico Khaitan, KRBL, Liberty Shoes, GTC Industries and Gillette were among the major losers. Britannia Industries, Godrej Consumer, Bata and Nestle were among the few that bucked the trend.

The plantation sector was in for a rude surprise with prominent tea garden stocks registering sharp declines. Losers included Apeejay Tea, Bombay Burmah, Harrisons, Warren Tea, Williamson Tea Assam, Goodricke and McLeod Russel.

Tata Coffee declined by 1.1 per cent. Instant coffee manufacturer CCL Products also went downhill by registering a 1.2-per cent decline.

Radha Madhav Corporation among the newly listed stocks continued to trade intensively, however, the stock appears to have run out of steam. The stock declined by about 8 per cent.

Major stocks in the packaging sector including Cosmo films, Flex Industries, Polyplex Corporation, Essel Propack also registered declines.

A mixed trend prevailed among polymer processors. While Nilkamal Plastics, VIP Industries and Jain Irrigation registered declines. Sintex, Supreme and Wim Plast closed with gains.

Stock-specific action:

* Wipro gained 2.65 per cent after the company declared 34 per cent rise in stand alone earnings and a 27-per cent rise in consolidated earnings for the third quarter.

* Chemplast Sanmar was among the prominent gainers in the market. On the back of a sharp jump in volumes the stock retuned closer to the 100-rupees mark by registering a gain of 9.7 per cent. Activity in the counter has been intensive since the beginning of the new year.

Prominent gainers among the Nifty constituents were VSNL, Hindalco, ABB, Gujarat Ambuja Cement, Dr. Reddy's, Zee Telefilms, Bajaj Auto and BPCL.

Those that figured in the losers list were ONGC, Tata Motors, National Aluminium, IPCL and Larsen & Toubro.

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