The markets are going ballistic with each passing day. And reasons are not difficult to find. Rise in advance tax payments by Indian corporates coupled by encouraging US data on jobs are helping the bourses to move ahead. For the week ended July 13, 2007, FIIs' net buying stood at Rs 5,833 crore.
Consequently, the Sensex climbed to a new peak, surging 2 per cent over the week. Nifty was up 2.72 per cent over the week. For whole of the week the Sensex remained above 15,000 level mark with an exception on Wednesday.
On Monday, the Sensex was up 81 points and Nifty closed 34.55 points high. Much of this rise was helped by counterparts in Japan and the US. Sentiment was high in Japan over the new machinery orders and for the US, the exciting job data lifted the investor mood. The day belonged to the frontline technology stocks led by Infosys, ahead its first quarter results. Apart from Infosys, TCS and Wipro closed 1 per cent higher. Among the large cap companies the notable gainers were Sterlite Industries (4.4 per cent), Reliance Energy (3 per cent) , L&T (2.2 per cent), BHEL (1.6 per cent).
Some banking stocks also closed high. Union Bank was up 11.82 per cent to close at Rs 145.20. Other banking stocks like Dena Bank, ING Vysya Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Vijaya Bank, Corporation Bank, Oriental Bank and Punjab National Bank also reported handsome gains.
On Tuesday, there was some profit booking by the investors on the eve of first quarter results of Infosys. The Sensex closed at 15009.88, down 35 points while Nifty closed at 4406.05, down 13.35 points. Of late, concerns over rising interest rates, lower volume growth and rising input costs have held the auto stocks back. There are expectations that some of the auto companies might report a fall in their earnings. But fortunately, they had something to cheer about as buying was witnessed in some of them. The gainers included Tata Motors, Maruti Udyog and Mahindra and Mahindra. There were also talks of Tata group picking up 4.6 per cent stake in Development Credit Bank. The Realty Index also made its debut. The index, which has 11 real estate stocks as its constituents, was up a modest 0.32 per cent on the first day. DLF has the highest weightage in the index, followed by Unitech.
Wednesday was the big day --- the Infosys results were declared. The company posted robust first quarter numbers but gave a grim revenue guidance which took toll on the markets. The company estimated an erosion of Rs 1,000 crore from its top line in 2008, should the hardening of the rupee continues. The Sensex lost almost 100 points while Nifty lost 19 points to close at 14,910.62 and 4387.15 points, respectively. The BSE IT index ended up being the top loser of the day, going down by 3.3 per cent. Infosys lost 4.5 per cent, TCS and Satyam Computer lost 3.3 per cent each and Wipro was down 2 per cent. Cement stocks, however, surged. The most prominent gainers in this space included Grasim, ACC and Jaiprakash Associates.
On Thursday, the Street shrugged the tech-induced decline. The BSE Sensex scaled to a record high of 15,092.04, up 181 points and Nifty closed at 4446.15, up 59 points. Except for IT, heavy buying was witnessed in all major counters like power, metals, realty and infrastructure stocks leading to the rally. Of course, the market also received some respite from the sops announced in the bailout package for the exporters. GMR Infrastructure surged 13.58 per cent to close at 951.65. In fact such has been the liking for this stock that it has almost doubled over the last one month period. The scrip has zoomed from Rs 523 on June 12 to Rs 952 on July 12. From 13 mutual fund schemes in February, the scrip is now part of 16 schemes (as per June portfolio). Other prominent gainers were KEC Infrastructure (20.2 per cent), Reliance Energy (6.9 per cent), Hindalco (6.2 per cent ), SAIL (5.3 per cent), GE Shipping (5.29 per cent) and BHEL (4.2 per cent).
On Friday the markets were up again for the second consecutive day. Key metal stocks led the rally, pushing the Sensex up by 180.68 points to a high of 15,272.72. Nifty gained 1.31 per cent to close at 4504.55. Dow Jones hit an all-time high, mainly due to a positive earnings surprise from Wal Mart, and news of Rio-Tinto's bid for Alcan. But the optimism swept across the Asian markets. In the domestic markets, except for healthcare, realty and consumer durables, all indices ended in green.
During the week, mutual funds emerged as net sellers to the tune of Rs 566.4 crore.
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