FIIs turned net sellers in both equity as well as debt instruments for the week ended April 10. During this period, FIIs were net sellers in equity instruments to the tune of $24.60 million (Rs 91.40 crore) and $6.80 million (Rs 25.20 crore) in debt instruments. FIIs have thus continued to remain net sellers in the month of April, the total figure being $11 million (Rs 41 crore) as against positive flows of $152.5 million for the month of March. The cumulative net FII investment to date stands at $9,238 million.

Nestle India intimates BSE of board meeting: Nestle India has intimated the Bombay Stock Exchange of its board meeting which was scheduled on April 15. Though the outcome of the meeting is not known, the BSE release stated that Nestle called the meeting `to consider matters arising consequent upon the appointment of Rajendra Singh as the managing director'.

JM Mutual Fund declares dividend for various schemes: JM Mutual Fund hasdeclared final dividend under the dividend plans of its various schemes for the period ended March 31, 1998. For JM equity fund - dividend plan a 6 per cent dividend has been declared, while for JM Balanced fund and Liquid fund a dividend of 17 per cent and 14 per cent(including interim dividend of 8 per cent each in both the schemes) respectively has been declared.

Templeton India Income Fund announces 15% dividend: Templeton Mutual Fund's board of trustees have approved payment of dividend of 15 per cent for the period ending March 31 for its maiden scheme Templeton India Income Fund (TIIF). The dividend works out to Rs 1.50 per unit on face value of Rs 10. The post dividend NAV of TIIF is Rs 10.25. TIIF has provided annualised returns of 16.27 per cent (under the dividend plan) and 14.59 per cent (under the growth plan) since its inception.

Lakme EGM on May 14: The board of Lakme has called for an extra-ordinary general meeting of the shareholders of the company on May 14 at 3.30 pm, toapprove the divestment by the company of its 50 per cent stake in the joint venture Lakme Lever Ltd and also the sale of its cosmetics manufacturing facilities.

Amfi to submit benchmarking report soon: The Amfi top brass is more convinced at taking government debt securities as the benchmark in the calculation of NAVs for debt-oriented schemes. Other than this, the rating of an instrument should also be taken into consideration for calculation of NAVs, said top Amfi sources. This two pronged benchmark system will ensure an unbiased NAV calculation. The Amfi sub-committee has however yet to take a final decision on whether to take the government securities or the corporate debt securities as the benchmark. It is expected to submit its report this week.

SBI Asset Management pumps funds to boost MBF's NAV: SBI Asset Management Company has pumped in close to Rs 9 crore to shore up the net asset value of Magnum Bond Fund. The fund infusion is aimed at facilitating the dividend payout by SBIMF'sincome scheme. As a result, the NAV has risen from Rs 9.08 to Rs 10.79, an appreciation of 18.81 per cent in one month.

Alliance Capital offshore fund bags S&P award: Alliance Capital's offshore India country fund, the India Liberalisation Fund, Class A, has been awarded first place in Standard & Poor's Micropal 1997 awards. Launched in December 1993, India Liberalisation Fund A returned 15.26 per cent in dollar terms in the calendar year 1997. It outperformed the benchmark BSE Dollex by 6.78 per cent during the same period. The fund invests mainly in equities and has $87.19 million in assets under management as on April 2.

BSE to suspend trading in Jagdambay Agri: The Bombay Stock Exchange has decided to suspend trading in the equity shares of Jagdambay Agri Genetics with effect from April 20 on the basis of violation of clause 15 of the listing agreement with the exchange.

BSE to suspend trading in Raashi Fertilizers debentures: The Bombay Stock Exchange has decided to suspendtrading in the debentures of Raashi Fertilizers with effect from April 16, until further notice on the basis of violation of clause 16 regarding the intimation of book closure or record date to the exchange as per the listing agreement.

Fuller International to acquire more shares: Fuller International Inc has made an open offer to the public shareholders of Fuller India Ltd to acquire the outstanding equity. In a notice through the Chennai Stock Exchange (MSE), the acquirer has offered a price of Rs 135.25 per share. This is the second offer made by Fuller International. It would open on April 17, 1998, and close on May 8, 1998.

RBI rejects Vikas Fin application for NBFC status: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has rejected the application for certificate of registration submitted by Hyderabad-based Vikas Kumar Finance (P) Limited. RBI, in a statement issued on Wednesday, said the company cannot transact the business of a non-banking financial institution.

CxSE gets nod for modifiedcarry forward system: The Cochin Stock Exchange has received the approval for introducing the `modified carry forward system'. With this approval, a member of CxSE can carry forward positions in shares up to a value of Rs 1.5 crore from one settlement to succeeding settlements. The approval is expected to result in a quantum jump in CxSE's trading volume.

NSE completes 177th settlement: The National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Wednesday completed its 177th settlement valued at Rs 1780.85 crore for securities and Rs 298.65 crore in funds. The pay-out has been completed and all shortages to the extent of 1.58 per cent have been auctioned.

DSE index jumps 22 points: The benchmark index again crossed 900-point level following sharp upsurge in stock prices on revival of buying by foreign funds and speculators coupled with bears covering and notched up sizeable gains. Mirroring the mood of the market, the DSE index shot up by a whopping 21.78 points to close at 920.31 points.

Rupee easesagainst dollar: The rupee eased by 10 paise against the greenback on hectic dollar demand from corporate sectors and banks for import covering on the interbank foreign exchange (forex) market on Wednesday. The dollar opened at 39.61/62. Inspite of the two days supply it went gradually up and reached the day's high of 39.73/74 in intra-day trading. At that level the SBI sold dollars appreciating the rupee to 39.68 from the day's high.

Call rates end at 6.75%: The overnight call money rates opened at 7-7.10 per cent on Wednesday as against the previous close of 6.50-6.75 per cent. The call rates eased in the afternoon and closed at 6.75-7 per cent. The call market witnessed little activity, but there was some buying pressure owing to ample liquidity in the system. “Most deals were struck at 6.75-7 per cent. Meanwhile, some deals were also done at 7.10 per cent,” a dealer from a nationalised bank said.

COMMODITY MARKET

Gold, silver dip: Prices of gold and silver declined at thebullion market on Wednesday on weak overseas advices coupled with poor seasonal buying. Both the precious metals opened weak and improved marginally towards the fag-end but ended below the previous close. Standard gold declined by Rs 10 to close at Rs 4,240 as against the last close of Rs 4,250. 22-carat gold was nominally quoted weak at Rs 3,920 from Rs 3,930. Ready silver of .999 fineness declined further by Rs 45 to end at Rs 8,855 as against the last close of Rs 8,900. Raw silver of .916 fineness fell by Rs 60 to Rs 8,735 from Rs 8,795.

Select metals move up: Prices of select metals hardened on the non-ferrous metals market on Wednesday on fresh industrial buying coupled with better London advices, traders said. Copper scrap heavy at Rs 109.75, copper wire bar at Rs 120.00, copper utensils at Rs 95.25, brass scrap at Rs 85.75, brass sheets cutting at Rs 89.75, zinc at Rs 73 and lead at Rs 41.25 per kilo finished higher.

Copra prices end better: Prices of copra rajapur shot up sharply onthe spices market on Wednesday on poor arrivals, traders said. Copra loose alapuzha and kozhikode also finished better. Pepper and ginger markets remained closed due to traders bandh. Copra rajapur rallied by Rs 400 to close at Rs 5,000 while copra edible loose (kozhikode) rose by Rs 75 to Rs 3,000 and copra edible loose (alapuzha) rose by Rs 25 to Rs 2,850.