The Hindu Business Line : Pharma, pvt bank stocks upbeat on dull day

THE Sensex opened on a firm note before losing steam towards the end of the day. The decline was all-round barring select sectors such as private sector banks, pharma and cement.

PSU stocks were the least affected. The BSE PSU index declined 0.38 per cent compared to the Sensex that tanked more than a percentage point to 6,346.48 points.

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Money has been alternating between large caps and mid caps.

Over the last few weeks, the Nifty and the CNX Midcap have seldom moved in tandem. On days when the Nifty soars, the mid cap index has remained muted.

The trend was repeated on Friday too. The Nifty tanked 1.04 per cent to close at 2012.10 points. The CNX Mid Cap 200 index, on the other hand, gained 0.18 per cent to close at 2,425.05 points.

The Junior Nifty index too has been upbeat since November. This trend has been consistent over the past six to seven years, when the Junior Nifty rises between November and February.

The advance to decline ratio indicated a bearish undertone in the markets. The maximum percentage of declines was in the B group stocks, where 68 per cent of the stocks declined. Overall, 945 stocks advanced and 1,449 stocks declined on the BSE.

Pharma and private sector bank stocks were upbeat on a rather dull day. Private sector banks and PSU banks displayed divergent trends.

Banking stocks, barring private sector banking stocks, took a hit. IOB and J&K Bank were among the few PSU banks to buck the trend. IOB inched up 3 per cent to Rs 67 and J&K Bank closed 3.1 per cent higher at 361.4.

Among the private sectors banking stocks, Dhanalakshmi Bank, City Union Bank, Karur Vysya Bank, South Indian Bank, Karnataka Bank and ING Vysya Bank gained in excess of 10 per cent.

Karnataka Bank was the top mover of the day, gaining 19.9 per cent. These stocks also witnessed a substantial increase in traded volumes.

Federal Bank and United Western Bank too piggybacked the rally, gaining in excess of 4.5 per cent. Volumes were higher in these stocks too.

Mid-cap pharma stocks and stocks from the cement sector were upbeat in a bearish market.

Pharma stocks such as Lupin, Matrix Laboratories, Glenmark Pharma, Glaxo Smithkline, E Merck, Divi's Laboratories, Aventis Pharma and Abbot Labs rallied ahead.

Nicholas Piramal has acquired an inhalation aesthetics business. This sent the stock up 4 per cent during the day. The stock closed at Rs 1,383.6. Among the cement stocks, Madras Cements, Grasim and Shree Cement moved north.

Stocks from the mining segment such as Neyveli Lignite and Sesa Goa were in demand. Neyveli Lignite moved up 2 per cent and Sesa Goa gained put on Rs 23.5 to close at Rs 941.

The stock of the Government owned company ITI gained 8 per cent for the day. The Government has cleared a Rs 1,000-crore revival package for the company. The stock gained for the second straight day after the announcement.

Bharti Tele took a knock after a steady upmove in the past few days. The stock tanked 7 per cent to close at 198.5. Havells India, Macmillan, Taj GVK Hotels and Container Corporation were some of the major gainers of the day.

Maharashtra Seamless, India Foils, Damodar Threads, Sonata Software, Zigma Software, Bhagheeratha Engineering, TTK Prestige, Pricol and IT&T were some of the major gainers. The price rise was accompanied by substantial volume gains.

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