UTI has reduced the lock-in period in its money market mutual fund to 15 days with effect from May 9. The MMMF, which has a lock-in period of 30 days, has generated an average 15-day return of 10.36 per cent, with a maximum return of 14.16 per cent and a minimum of 6.65 per cent, a release said on Friday.

Sebi board meeting on Monday: The Sebi board will meet on May 11 to consider the LC Gupta committee report on the introduction of derivatives trading in India. According to sources, the agenda for the meeting has been extended to study the necessary amendments needed to be made in the Sebi regulations to accommodate the RBI policy on FII investments in government securities.

Raymond results beat expectations: A 100 per cent jump in other income, coupled with a good performance by the files and textiles division and a substantial drop in raw material requirement has propelled Raymond's net profit by 378 per cent to Rs 45 crore for the yearended March 31, 1998. The scrip started rising in mid-March from Rs 74 and within a month it peaked at Rs 131.10 before witnessing a correction.

Carrier Aircon net seen at Rs 32 cr: The market expects Carrier Aircon to report a net profit of over Rs 30 crore. The scrip has zoomed past the Rs 300 mark. Carrier's scrip has shot up from Rs 257 to the current level of Rs 297 in less than five trading sessions. The market has now revised the earlier expectation of a net profit of Rs 26-28 crore to Rs 32-34 crore.

Sebi suspends 4 merchant bankers: Sebi has suspended three category IV merchant bankers for non-payment of their annual registration fees. The merchant bankers are Manish Dalal, Mukta Finvest Pvt Ltd and JJ Chaudhari & Company. While the first two have not paid their fees for the period 1997-98, the third company has failed to do so for 1996-97.

BSE closed on Monday: The Bombay Stock Exchange will remain closed on May 11 for Buddha Pournima.

Magnum Multiplier '93 payout at15%: SBI Mutual Fund has announced a dividend of 15 per cent for its Magnum Multiplier Plus Scheme, 1993. This is the first time that SBI Mutual Fund has declared a dividend under this scheme since its launch. The NAV of the scheme before the dividend is Rs 14.34 as on May 5.

BSE seeks FDs from members: BSE has asked its member brokers to deposit fixed deposit receipts (FDRs) against daily margin or additional capital with a maturity period of not less than six months. The exchange has also specified that the FDRs deposited towards the base minimum capital should have a maturity of not less than three years.

Trading in OCL India's shares: Trading in OCL India's shares will begin from May 12 on the BSE in the Rs 10 paid-up share instead of the partly paid-up share.

Trading in Oxford Intl to be suspended: BSE has decided to suspend trading in the equity shares of Oxford International Finance India May 12 for non-compliance with clause 16 of the listing agreement.

Dealings inMax India shares: Trading in the debentures of Max India will be allowed on the BSE with effect from May 12. The debentures were earlier suspended on account of non-compliance with the listing agreement of the exchange.

Nifty loses 11 points: Leading scrips declined on the NSE on Friday following selling pressure by speculators on the last day of current settlement at the BSE. The NSE-50 Index settled at 1,161.55, down 10.90 points from the previous close. The Mid-cap Index closed at 1,620.50, losing 19.65 points. The total traded value was Rs 1,456.23 crore.

CSE shares lose value: Share prices lost ground on the Calcutta Stock Exchange on Friday due to heavy offerings which were partly induced by the last day of the settlement on the BSE. The 40-share CSE Index finished at 2,260.74 points after moving between 2,274.53 and 2,255.16 points.

MSE shares end higher: Equities gained ground on the Madras Stock Exchange on Friday. Infotech scrips were the top performers of the day. TheMSE Share Price Index ended at 4,294.63 against its previous close of 4,280.58. Gains in index-based shares such as India Cements, ITC and L&T aided the upward movement in share prices. Satyam Computer closed at Rs 495.85, up Rs 1.65.

Software scrips move up on BgSE: Equities remained divergent at the Bangalore Stock Exchange on Friday. According to marketmen, there was good buying interest in software scrips. BFL Software and Satyam Computers firmed up to Rs 331 (Rs 320) and Rs 495.15 (Rs 491.90) while ITC ended lower at Rs 785.75 (Rs 786.80). Tisco saw a marginal gain at Rs 155.50 (Rs 154.25) whereas Reliance and SBI were lower at Rs 189.95 (Rs 190.65) and Rs 277.60 (Rs 281.75).

NSE completes settlement: The NSE has witnessed a settlement to the tune of Rs 1,556.66 crore for securities and Rs 318.91 crore in funds on May 8. The quantity of securities settled through the demat mode was 40.32 lakh shares valued at Rs 69.87 crore. The pay-out has been completed and shortages to the extent of1.03 per cent have been rectified, said an NSE statement. Unrectified bad deliveries for the previous settlement to the extent of 0.35 per cent have been auctioned.

Skindia Index loses 0.15%: The Skindia GDR Index dropped by 0.15 per cent from 959.29 to 957.85 on May 7. The Skindia GDR Index p/e ratio was 21.10 on May 7, compared with 21.13 on May 6. The top gainers were Indo Gulf, Videocon International and CESC which quoted at $1.35 ($1.20), $2.75 ($2.50) and $1.25 ($1.20) respectively. Losers included Arvind Mills, Century Textiles and Mahindra & Mahindra.

Call rate ends at 5.5%: Hectic activity was witnessed in the overnight call money market on Friday despite it being a reporting day. The call rates opened at 5.5-6 per cent, compared with the previous close of 5.90-5.95 per cent. They closed at 4.5-5.5 per cent.

Silver firms up, gold declines: Silver firmed up while gold declined on the local bullion market on Friday. Silver ready of .999 fineness firmed up by Rs 45 to end atRs 8,420. Raw silver of .916 fineness was up by Rs 50 to Rs 8,315. Standard gold lost Rs 5 to end at Rs 4,100.