BSE has decided to remove Standard Motor Products of India and Western Ind Sugars & Chemicals Ind from the list of debentures listed on the exchange with effect from July 31.

BSE revises special margins:

BSE has revised the special margins imposed by it on the following stocks based on the closing price of the scrips on the last day of the settlement ended July 31: Bell South (Rs 17), BFL Software (Rs 125), Cyberspace Info (Rs 10), Globe Stock (Rs 4), Himachal Futuristic (Rs 7), Nucleus Software (Rs 7), Pertech Computer (Rs 3) and Ram Informat (Rs 5). The revised special margins will be implemented with effect from August 3.

Sebi directive on OCBs:

Sebi has informed the BSE that the effective date for including overseas corporate bodies in the list of institutional investors and removing the minimum portfolio investment limit of Rs 10 crore for FIIs, DFIs, MFs and OCBs will be September 1.

EQUITIES DOMESTIC

Lacklustretrading on CSE:

Listless dealings marked trading at the Calcutta Stock Exchange on Monday due to lack of buying support. Brokers attributed the fall in share prices to the uncertainty on the political front. The 40-share CSE Index closed at the days lowest level of 1,766.62 points. ITC ended at Rs 601.40, Bata at Rs 214.10, ACC at Rs 1,253, Tisco at Rs 99.50, Reliance at Rs 132.30, L&T at Rs 197.10 and Tata Tea at Rs 294.30.

DSE Index drops 18 points:

Nervous selling by foreign funds, amidst absence of buying support, pulled stock prices sharply down on the Delhi Stock Exchange on Monday after reports of firing by Pakistani troops in the Kashmir region. The DSE Index declined by 18.47 points to close at 700.19 points. Traders said reports of weakness in the Japanese yen also led to the fall in share prices.

MSE Index loses 47 points:

Equities lost value on the Madras Stock Exchange on Monday following selling pressure. The MSE Share Price Index dipped by 47.40 points to close at3,527.98. L&T declined by Rs 9 to Rs 195, ITC by Rs 26.50 to Rs 611.50, SBI by Rs 7.30 to Rs 202.60, Telco by Rs 4.95 to Rs 126 and Reliance by Rs 4.50 to Rs 133.05.

BgSE shares end down:

Share prices slumped at the Bangalore Stock Exchange on Monday. According to marketmen, the overall trend was weak with sellers outnumbering buyers. The turnover on the bourse stood at Rs 19.79 crore. ITC declined to Rs 601.50 from an opening of Rs 618 while Canbonus was unchanged at Rs 7.35. Satyam Computers, Reliance and SBI were quoted lower at Rs 486.40 (Rs 509.70), Rs 132.50 (Rs 133.25) and Rs 203.45 (Rs 210).

NSE debt market turnover at Rs 318 cr:

The wholesale debt market segment of the NSE on Monday witnessed trading worth Rs 318.24 crore. The zero coupon government bond maturing in 2000 (series III) was traded for Rs 50 crore at a weighted yield of 10.94 per cent. The 11.64 per cent government loan maturing in 2000 was traded for Rs 25 crore at a weighted yield of 10.97 per cent.

EQUITIESFOREIGN

Skindia Index gains 0.61%:

The Skindia GDR Index moved up by 0.61 per cent from 657.03 to 661.05 on July 31. The Skindia GDR Index p/e ratio was 15.22 on July 31 compared with 15.02 on July 30. The top gainers were VSNL, MTNL and GE Shipping which quoted at $12.00 ($11.25), $12.50 ($12.00) and $4.10 ($3.95) respectively. Losers included Arvind Mills, IPCL and Indian Rayon.

KL shares end sharply down:

Malaysian shares ended sharply lower on Monday as a mix of bearish news pressured large capitalised issues, analysts said. The weak Japanese yen, lower Wall Street closing on Friday, the slide in Hong Kong shares and fears of a weakening ringgit turned sellers out in force. At the close, the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchanges key Composite Index was down 4.07 per cent, or 16.38 points, to 386.27.

Jakarta stocks close lower:

Jakarta stocks closed lower on Monday in quiet trading amid falls in most regional markets and a weakening of the yen, dealers said. They said sentimentwas weak and volume was thin as investors were cautious amid general market bearishness. The composite index ended down 6.46 points or 1.34 per cent at 475.26 points.

MONEY MARKET

Call rates end at 6.75%:

The overnight call money rates opened at the previous close of 6.50-6.75 per cent on Monday. It remained at the same level throughout the morning session, before easing in the afternoon to close at 6.00-6.25 per cent. Dealers said there was ample liquidity in the system as the total inflows through a three-day fixed rate repo stood at Rs 4,200 crore.

Rupee range-bound:

The rupee traded in a three paise band on Monday after opening at 42.55, little changed from its previous close. The local currency hovered at 42.53/55 till noon before briefly touching its intra-day low of 42.56. It recovered in late afternoon to trade at 42.53/54 before losing value to close the day at 42.55/56.

COMMODITY MARKET

Silver improves, gold eases:

Silver prices improved while goldprices declined at the local bullion market on Monday. Silver.999 and raw gained by Rs 20 and Rs 65 to end at Rs 8,215 and Rs 8,105 per kg respectively due to good demand from industrial consumers. Gold standard mint and 22-carat decreased by Rs 5 each to Rs 4,205 and Rs 3,890 per 10 gm.

Groundnut oil prices fall:

Groundnut oil prices declined further on Monday following increased arrivals. Groundnut oil fell by Rs 5 to close at Rs 513. However, groundnut bold found good support and recovered by Rs 10 to end at Rs 2,070. In the futures market, castorseed futures registered a sharp rise of Rs 19 to close at Rs 1,683 due to heavy offtake by shippers.

Sugar prices end little changed:

A steady trend prevailed at the sugar market on Monday. Small sugar quality S-30 ended at Rs 1,480/1,493 (Rs 1,475/1,495) and medium sugar quality M-30 at Rs 1,495/1,550 (Rs 1,495/1,555).