Market may stage a short-term declineOn March 12 the Sensex closed at 3,716.50 points. As compared to the close of the previous week, the Sensex showed a minor gain of eight points. The bullish fervour that was seen in the initial days of the week received a setback as problems emerged on the political front. Unless the Index manages to rise above 3,800, it is unlikely that the rally will continue.
Sundaram Clayton advances year-end:
TVS group company Sundaram Clayton Ltd has decided to shed a two-decade old tradition by closing its financial year 1997-98 on March 31, two months ahead of its regular year-end in the month of May. The board of the company recently cleared the decision to restrict the current financial year to a 10-month period.
China B shares end mixed:
China's hard currency B shares ended mixed on Friday as trading shifted to Shanghai amid fears over currency exposure for Shenzhen stocks, brokers said. The denomination of Shenzhen B shares in Hong Kongdollars, seen as vulnerable to speculative attack, has convinced many local investors to turn their attention to Shanghai. Shanghai's B share index ended up 1.261 points, to 56.343.
HK stocks close firmer:
Hong Kong stocks drifted to a higher Friday close on the back of index heavyweight HSBC Holdings but brokers said the market lacked clear direction. The Hang Seng Index climbed 154.56 points, or 1.42 per cent, to end at 11,057.03. Turnover remained quiet at HK $5.2 billion against Thursday's HK $5.8 billion with little news to trade on.
Nikkei ends up nearly 3%:
Tokyo's key stock average surged by nearly three per cent by the end of Friday's session, cheered by a media report that the Japanese government has decided to use 1.3 trillion yen in postal funds to boost share prices by the end of this fiscal year, brokers said. The 225-share Nikkei average closed up 484.92 points or 2.93 per cent at 17,060.14.
HK bourse adds 15 stocks to short-selling list:
The Stock Exchange ofHong Kong said on Friday 15 additional securities will be eligible for shortselling from Monday, bringing the total number of securities designated for short selling in the territory to 325. The securities include China Telecom (Hong Kong) Ltd and China National Aviation Co Ltd.
Seoul stocks end higher:
Seoul stocks closed slightly higher on Friday as foreign buying sustained despite a brief sales binge, prompted by news reports of "wartime mobilisation" in North Korea, brokers said. The Composite Stock Index closed 0.06 per cent, or 0.32 points, higher at 536.16 points.
Euro shares make new records:
European bourses resumed their record-breaking ways on Friday when shares in Paris and Milan strode to new trading highs after solid gains in Asia and Wall Street's resilience overnight. Shares were also higher in London and Frankfurt, where prices rose gently at first but then broke strongly upwards, traders said. But Paris was the hottest market, fired by a surge in Renault shares whichshot up 10 per cent.
UK shares rise on end-of-quarter buying:
The FTSE 100 and the Mid 250 had posted moderate gains by mid-morning on Friday with the leading index trading only half a per cent from this week's newly-set peak and the broader index at fresh records. End-of-quarter buying and a lack of adverse influences kept early gains in place while expectations of a stronger start on the Dow helped shore up market optimism. The FTSE 100 was 36.2 points up at 5,831 by 1141 GMT.
LME copper tries to consolidate above $1,800:
Overnight producer selling halted copper's burst though $1,845 on Friday morning, with traders divided over whether more short-covering will take place on Friday and keep prices firmly above $1,800. In pre-market trading copper was holding above Thursday night's close of $1,825, touching $1,840 early this morning.
HK gold ends higher:
Hong Kong spot gold ended higher on Friday while spot palladium traded at 18-year highs amid worries of tight supplies,dealers said. Traders said the trend of buying palladium over the past couple of days continued and showed no signs of ending. Spot palladium was quoted late in the day at US $264/267 an ounce.
Clarification:
In response to the article on March 10, Fujitsu ICIM has clarified saying that the company is not a marketer of computer peripherals and office automation systems, rather it is a systems integrator and provider of services. The RPG group also has no intention of diluting its stake in the company and the accumulated losses in the company still stand at Rs 12.92 crore.
