Sensex up 258 points by close

October 25, 2007

The markets ended firm on Thursday with the benchmark index closing at 18,770 levels, up 1.4 per cent or 258 points.

In broader markets, the Nifty moved up 1.3 per cent or 73 points to end the day at 5,568 levels.

“The Nifty needs to close above 5,580 levels to make an attempt of breaching the previous high,” said Anil Manghnani, Director, Modern Shares & Stock Brokers

“The markets are expected to be volatile. It is better that investors stay clear for at least a week,” added Vikram Bhatt, Director, Ajmera Associates.

The markets are also awaiting the developments of the crucial SEBI meet that will decide on regulatory norms for the stock markets.

SEBI Chairman M Damodaran along with his team is unlikely to go back on its P-Notes stand on Thursday. However, it may rework eligibility criteria for FII registration to help investors.

In world markets, Wall Street recovered from steep losses Wednesday amid hopes for an imminent interest rate cut. According to preliminary calculations, the Dow ended flat with a marginal fall of 0.01 per cent.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 3.71 points or 0.24 per cent, while the technology-dominated Nasdaq composite index lost 24.50 points to end the day at 2,774 levels.

Back home, leading the charge at the Sensex was Tata Steel. The counter moved up over eight per cent or Rs 73. ICICI Bank, Maruti Suzuki India, Bharti Airtel, Wipro, Hindustan Unilever, Tata Motors, HDFC Bank and Mahindra & Mahindra were some of the other notable gainers.

However, Cipla at Rs 186 levels tanked five per cent. Dr Reddys, ACC, HDFC, Reliance Energy, Infosys Technologies, Satyam Computer, Reliance Communication, Ranbaxy, TCS and BHEL also closed in the red.

Metals hot

Among sectoral indices, the BSE metal index was the biggest gainer that moved up four per cent or 629 points. Jindal Saw, SAIL, Ispat Industries, Jindal Steel & Power, Sesa Goa, Bhushan Steel, Sterlite Industries and NALCO logged smart gains besides Tata Steel.

Banking scrips continued on their journey north with ICICI Bank surging 4.4 per cent or Rs 48. Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, Punjab National Bank, SBI, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Centurion Bank of Punjab, Karnataka Bank and Axis Bank also held firm.

Amtek Auto (up 8.9 per cent), MRF Limited (up 6.1 per cent), Bharat Forge (up 4.1 per cent), Maruti Suzuki India (up 3.6 per cent), Tata Motors (up 2.4 per cent), Mahindra & Mahindra (up 1.7 per cent) and Exide Industries (up 0.7 per cent) raced ahead in the auto pack.

New listing

Maytas Infra made its debut at the bourses on Thursday. The stock listed at Rs 511 as against the Initial Public Offer (IPO) price at Rs 370.

The Hyderabad-based construction company and infrastructure developer was focused on irrigation, roads, bridges and buildings.

“We have a pan-India presence and have recently opened an office in Dubai. We are pursuing BOT projects in roads and other infrastructure projects. Some of the road sectors give us 12-13 per cent EBDITA margin,” said PK Madhav, CEO, Maytas Infra.

It is now positioning itself for water and waster water management, SEZ, ports and airport sectors. The stock closed at Rs 614 levels.

Source: ndtvprofit.com