The Nifty Index also declined by 15.40 points to close at 1,075.55 points.Selling pressure continued to be concentrated at the pivotals, which slumped further in the absence of institutional support.

According to market sources, James Capel and the Singapore government were reported to have bought huge chunks of ITC at lower levels of Rs 698 on the BSE.

Of the 52 lakh shares traded on the exchange, foreign-institutional investor (FII) purchases at the ITC counter were reported to have been to the tune of 16-19 lakh shares, which provided support to the counter to trade above the crucial barrier of Rs 713.

The expectation of a 50 per cent fall in Tisco's net profit saw the counter dip totrade at the day's low of Rs 136.10. It finally closed at Rs 137.25, registering a net loss of 4.55 per cent.

Reliance, after a gap of over two trading cycles, registered a sharp recovery in terms of volumes -- 57.97 lakh shares on the BSE. Broking outfit Jardine Fleming was rumoured to have sold about 11 lakh shares of Reliance at the intra-day high of Rs 173, which saw the stock move down to a low of Rs 166.40, registering a net loss of 3.81 per cent. At the global depository receipts (GDR) market, Reliance dipped by 6.92 per cent during the mid-day session at 13 GMT to trade at $7.40. In the past three trading sessions, the stock has fallen by over 15 per cent.

The other heavyweight stocks like ACC and BHEL also continued to be battered. On the day of the results, ACC was hammered down to an intra-day low of Rs 1,677 on rumours of an exceptionally pathetic performance. UTI, after displaying its money power on May 27 by entering into a deal with ICI, was seen as an active participant in the specifiedsection. Buying support by the domestic institution at counters like MTNL and HLL helped the index survive above the crucial barrier of 3,700.

FIIs were reported to have sold at selective counters like software and pharmaceuticals.

Pharmaceutical representatives like Pfizer, German Remedies, Glaxo and Knoll Pharma witnessed substantial erosion in their stock values during the intra-day's session.

News of the US acquisition by Lupin, however, provided the much-needed launch pad for Lupin Laboratories to move in the northward direction. A circuit-filter was slapped at Rs 182.20 on the NSE to curtail further price rise.

Fujitsi ICIM hit the circuit again on Thursday at the upper end at Rs 80.40. HCL-HP hit the circuit at the lower end at Rs 287.70 on the NSE.

A bad performance by Siemens negated the impact of the general market sentiment. The stock rallied upwards on renewed enquiry by local and FII punters, to close at Rs 283.10, registering a recovery of 7 per cent.

Prices steady onkerb

The news of Pakistan conducting nuclear tests saw local punters rush to cover their positions. Although the mood at the kerb market was upbeat, it failed to reflect in the stock prices. Though the immediate reaction to the nuclear tests was one of panic, sentiment improved eventually with Reliance moving up to Rs 165 from Rs 163 on the kerb. ITC, too, looked up to trade at Rs 713 at 8.15 pm from a low of Rs 707 in kerb deals. SBI was quoting at a premium of Rs 2 at Rs 245. ACC was trading at Rs 1,670.