Scrips turn attractive on good Q1 results: Impressive first quarter results for fiscal 1999 has made p/e multiples of a few companies very attractive. The companies include Infosys Technologies, DSQ Software, HDFC Ltd, Archies Greetings & Gifts and Clariant India. The stock markets have reacted positively to their good showing and the scrips of these companies have risen with a considerable increase in volumes.

BSE declares pay-out: BSE on Monday declared pay-out with respect to the A, B1 and B2 group securities forsettlement number 15 which ended on July 3, an exchange release said.

Special margins on 7 BSE stocks: BSE has decided to impose special margins on the following stocks with effect from July 13: Bell South (Rs 15), BFL Software (Rs 110), CG-Vak Software (Rs 5), Cyberspace Info (Rs 10), Himachal Futuristic (Rs 8), Nucleus Software (Rs 7), Pertech Comp (Rs 3) and Ram Informat (Rs 5).

Nifty loses 16 points: After initial buoyancy, pivotals declined at the NSE on Monday following heavy selling by bull operators. The NSE-50 Index lost 15.80 points to settle at 964.35 points. The Mid-cap Index drifted lower by 2.90 points to close at 1,421.55 points. The total turnover on the exchange stood at Rs 1,487.75 crore.

CSE shares end down: Share prices reversed an early rising trend in the wake of widespread profit-taking on the Calcutta Stock Exchange on Monday. The 40-share CSE Index, after fluctuating between 1,937.10 points and 1,880.65 points, finished at the day's low of 1,880.65 points.Castrol ended at Rs 580, Bata at Rs 178.20, ACC at Rs 1,320, Tisco at Rs 127.90, Tata Tea at Rs 307.40, BSES at Rs 162.60, Reliance at Rs 147.90, SBI at Rs 216.50 and L&T at Rs 231.80.

MSE Index falls 32 points: Equities failed to maintain higher levels on increased selling coupled with profit-taking on Monday. The MSE Share Price Index settled at 3,733.49 points, losing 31.51 points over the previous close. ITC, after touching the Rs 710 mark, reacted to finish at Rs 685.10, down Rs 14.90. Satyam Computers declined by Rs 13.55 to Rs 456.25, SBI by Rs 11.15 to Rs 217.90, Silverline by Rs 5.55 to Rs 76.85, DSQ Software by Rs 14.45 to Rs 253.50 and Reliance by Rs 2 to Rs 149.55.

BgSE shares lose value: Share prices declined at the Bangalore Stock Exchange on Monday. According to marketmen, there was heavy selling pressure in ITC and Satyam Computers. The turnover on the bourse stood at Rs 24.48 crore. ITC fell to Rs 676.80 from an opening of Rs 703.85 and Satyam Computers to Rs 459.95 (Rs486.45). Karnataka Bank was unchanged at Rs 72.50 while Reliance, SBI, L&T and Tisco sought lower levels of Rs 147.65 (Rs 152.75), Rs 217.40 (Rs 232.65), Rs 233.35 (Rs 241.95) and Rs 127.15 (Rs 131.50).

Skindia Index slips 1.32%: The Skindia GDR Index dropped by 1.32 per cent from 727.59 to 717.96 on July 10. The Skindia GDR Index p/e ratio was 16.62 on July 10 compared with 16.94 on July 9. The top gainers were Videocon International, SAIL and Spic which quoted at $1.25 ($1.15), $2.90 ($2.80) and $3.50 ($3.45) respectively. Losers included MTNL, ITC and VSNL.

Call rate ends at 5.5%: The overnight rates closed at the repos level on Monday. They opened steady at 6.25-6.50 per cent, compared with their previous close of 6.50 per cent. They remained at 6.25-6.50 per cent throughout the morning session. However, in the afternoon, they eased to 6 per cent to finally close at 5-5.50 per cent. According to dealers, the overnight interest rates ruled easy due to ample liquidity in the system.

Rupee ends at 42.60: The rupee opened at 42.53/55 against the dollar on Monday, little changed from its previous close. By mid-session, the local currency slid to 42.57/59 as corporates and banks bid for dollars. In later trades, the rupee touched its intra-day low of 42.58/60 and closed at this level.

NSE debt market turnover at Rs 139 cr: The wholesale debt market segment of NSE witnessed trades worth Rs 139.48 crore. The 11.55 per cent government security maturing in 2001 was traded for Rs 20 crore at a weighted yield of 11.46 per cent. The 12.30 per cent government security maturing in 1998 was traded for Rs 20 crore at a weighted yield of 9.27 per cent. The 16 per cent non-SLR bond of IFCI maturing in 2003 was traded for Rs 10 crore at a yield of 13.78 per cent.

Bullion mixed: A mixed trend prevailed at the bullion market on Monday. Silver .999 fell by Rs 10 to end at Rs 7,980 per kg on better overseas inflows and slack buying support while raw silver edged up by Rs 5 to Rs 7,860per kg. Standard mint gold remained steady at Rs 4,240 per 10 gm while 22-carat gold fell marginally by Rs 5 to Rs 3,920 per 10 gm on poor local demand.

Nickel, zinc prices fall: Nickel and zinc prices declined sharply while copper and brass remained subdued on Monday, dealers said. Nickel prices declined by Rs 3 per kg to close at Rs 279. Copper scrap ended weak at Rs 111. Brass scrap ended at Rs 87.25 (Rs 87.75), aluminium scrap at Rs 64.50 (Rs 64.50), zinc at Rs 77.50 (Rs 77.50), lead at Rs 43.50 (Rs 43.50) and tin at Rs 370.

Sugar steady: A steady trend prevailed at the sugar market on Monday. Small sugar S-30 rose by Rs 5/10 to close at Rs 1,465/1,495 per quintal due to poor arrivals. However, medium sugar M-30 held steady at Rs 1,485/1,530 on scattered enquiries, traders said.

Palm oil prices decline: Imported palm oil prices declined by Rs 12 to end at Rs 370 per 10 kg on heavy arrivals. In the edible section, groundnut oil eased by a rupee to end at Rs 492. In the non-ediblesection, castor oil rallied by Rs 17 to Rs 360. In the futures section, castorseed September contract ended at Rs 1,554, up Rs 4.50 over the last close.