Indian stocks fall for second day, Hindalco, Tata Power decline
Friday, 25 September 2009
MUMBAI,Sept. 24 (Bloomberg): India's shares fell for the second day, led by commodity producers after raw-material prices declined, and Tata Power Co. as Citigroup Inc. downgraded the stock to "hold."
Hindalco Industries Ltd., India's biggest aluminum producer, dropped 3.7 per cent. Tata Power, the third-largest electricity generator by value, slid the most in more than two weeks after it was cut from "buy" at Citigroup, which said the share price has factored in the company's "robust fundamentals."
The Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensitive Index, or Sensex, declined 129.4, or 0.8 per cent, to 16,590.1 at 1:22 p.m. in Mumbai. The measure is trading at 19.8 times reported earnings, more than twice the 8.9 times measured on March 9, when valuations were at their lowest this year.
"We are seeing some correction as the market seems to be overvalued," said Deven Choksey, chief executive of KR Choksey Shares & Securities Pvt. "Stocks need some fresh trigger to go higher from here."
The S&P CNX Nifty Index on the National Stock Exchange lost 0.4 per cent to 4,950.45. The BSE 200 Index fell 0.3 per cent to 2,043.03.
Hindalco retreated 3.7 per cent to 129.5 rupees. Tata Power dropped 1.2 per cent to 1,290.2 rupees, the most since Sept. 8.
Tata Steel Ltd., the biggest producer of the alloy, lost 2.1 per cent to 509.7. Sterlite Industries (India) Ltd., the No. 1 copper and zinc producer, declined 2 per cent to 752.95 rupees.
Copper for three-month delivery slid as much as 0.7 per cent to $6,085 a ton on the London Metal Exchange and traded at $6,129.75 a ton. December-delivery copper in Shanghai fell as much as 1.1 per cent to 47,680 yuan ($6,983) a ton and last traded at 47,940 yuan.
Overseas funds bought a net 15 billion rupees ($312 million) of Indian stocks on Sept. 22, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, known as SEBI, said on its Web site yesterday. The funds have bought a net 510.5 billion rupees of the nation's stocks since Jan. 1, compared with record net sales of 530 billion rupees for the whole of 2008.
Orbit Corp., Tanla Solutions Ltd. and Diamond Power Infrastructure Ltd. rose in Mumbai trading after funds bought stakes in the companies yesterday.
Orbit advanced 3.7 per cent to 249.15 rupees. Kuwait Investment Authority's Kuwait Investment Fund 205 bought 617,920 shares in the developer at 232.64 rupees each, data from the National Stock Exchange showed. Tanla gained 2 per cent to 75.95 rupees. Kuwait's Investment Fund acquired 3.91 million shares or 3.91 per cent of the software developer's equity, at prices ranging from 73.01 rupees to 73.47 rupees each yesterday, data from the exchanges showed.
Diamond Power, whose shares have gained 79 per cent this year, added 2.7 per cent, to 211 rupees. Reliance Infrastructure Fund bought 288,000 shares at 205.01 rupees each from Diamond Projects Ltd. yesterday, data from the Bombay Stock Exchange showed.
Hindalco Industries Ltd., India's biggest aluminum producer, dropped 3.7 per cent. Tata Power, the third-largest electricity generator by value, slid the most in more than two weeks after it was cut from "buy" at Citigroup, which said the share price has factored in the company's "robust fundamentals."
The Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensitive Index, or Sensex, declined 129.4, or 0.8 per cent, to 16,590.1 at 1:22 p.m. in Mumbai. The measure is trading at 19.8 times reported earnings, more than twice the 8.9 times measured on March 9, when valuations were at their lowest this year.
"We are seeing some correction as the market seems to be overvalued," said Deven Choksey, chief executive of KR Choksey Shares & Securities Pvt. "Stocks need some fresh trigger to go higher from here."
The S&P CNX Nifty Index on the National Stock Exchange lost 0.4 per cent to 4,950.45. The BSE 200 Index fell 0.3 per cent to 2,043.03.
Hindalco retreated 3.7 per cent to 129.5 rupees. Tata Power dropped 1.2 per cent to 1,290.2 rupees, the most since Sept. 8.
Tata Steel Ltd., the biggest producer of the alloy, lost 2.1 per cent to 509.7. Sterlite Industries (India) Ltd., the No. 1 copper and zinc producer, declined 2 per cent to 752.95 rupees.
Copper for three-month delivery slid as much as 0.7 per cent to $6,085 a ton on the London Metal Exchange and traded at $6,129.75 a ton. December-delivery copper in Shanghai fell as much as 1.1 per cent to 47,680 yuan ($6,983) a ton and last traded at 47,940 yuan.
Overseas funds bought a net 15 billion rupees ($312 million) of Indian stocks on Sept. 22, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, known as SEBI, said on its Web site yesterday. The funds have bought a net 510.5 billion rupees of the nation's stocks since Jan. 1, compared with record net sales of 530 billion rupees for the whole of 2008.
Orbit Corp., Tanla Solutions Ltd. and Diamond Power Infrastructure Ltd. rose in Mumbai trading after funds bought stakes in the companies yesterday.
Orbit advanced 3.7 per cent to 249.15 rupees. Kuwait Investment Authority's Kuwait Investment Fund 205 bought 617,920 shares in the developer at 232.64 rupees each, data from the National Stock Exchange showed. Tanla gained 2 per cent to 75.95 rupees. Kuwait's Investment Fund acquired 3.91 million shares or 3.91 per cent of the software developer's equity, at prices ranging from 73.01 rupees to 73.47 rupees each yesterday, data from the exchanges showed.
Diamond Power, whose shares have gained 79 per cent this year, added 2.7 per cent, to 211 rupees. Reliance Infrastructure Fund bought 288,000 shares at 205.01 rupees each from Diamond Projects Ltd. yesterday, data from the Bombay Stock Exchange showed.