Sensex spurts 396 points on Bernanke's soothing words; Metal, bank stocks rally

The soothing words of US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that a "highly accomodative policy'' was required in the foreseeable future and the central bank will not automatically raise interest rates when the unemployment rate slipped to 6.5 per cent in the US, lifted the market sentiment across the world, including India.

As his words reinforced belief that the Quantitative Easing would not disappear in a hurry even as the US economy hits the growth path led to a surge in major Asian markets, barring Nikkei of Japan.

Buoyed by US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's assurance that an accommodating monetary policy was needed now, Asian shares climbed to a three-week high on Thursday as investors were prompted to reassess the risk of an early end to the Fed's bond-buying programme.

Bank of Japan too kept its bond-buying programme unchanged at the end of its two-day meeting.

This optimism rubbed on the Indian markets as well with the BSE Sensex up by 395.99 points or 2.05 per cent at 19,690.11 and the NSE Nifty up by 121.45 points or 2.09 per cent at 5,938.15.

Metals (up 3.00 per cent), banking (+2.5 per cent) and realty (+2.11 per cent) indices rallied the most and supported the Sensex.

Hindalco was the biggest gainer in terms of percentage, up by 4.74 per cent to trade at Rs 102.80, followed by Sterlite 4.36 per cent at Rs 87.35, HDFC Bank 3.6 per cent at Rs 683, Hero MotoCorp 3.23 per cent at Rs 1,705 and HDFC 3.01 per cent at Rs 854.25.

But there were also warning signals closer home which could not be ignored with auto major Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd stating that it would be following "no-production days'' lasting 1-8 days during the remainder of the month with a view to align production with demand.

However M&M's gain was limited to 0.66 per cent at Rs 917.90 probably because of the company's move to cut back production. BHEL gained the least and was up 0.52 per cent at Rs 185.00.

Meanwhile, in the Asian trade, Nikkei rose 55.98 points or 0.39 per cent to 14,472.60, Hang Seng surged 532.93 points or 2.55 per cent to 21,437.50 and S&P/ASX 200 climbed 64.34 points or 1.31 per cent to 4,965.70.

In the European markets, Stoxx 50 was up 31.22 per cent or 1.17 per cent at 2,690.93, FTSE 100 rose 69.14 points or 1.06 per cent to 6,574.10 and DAX jumped 98.69 points or 1.22 per cent to 8,165.17.

Moily says gas price to be capped at $6.8/unit

Earlier, the government announced gas prices to nearly double to $8.42/mmbtu from $4.2/mmbtu effective April '14.

Petroleum Minister Veerappa Moily on Friday said the new gas price is $6.8 per mmbtu. The statement comes after being criticised in all quarters on its recent decision to double gas prices. Reports said the Finance Ministry wants Oil ministry to put a cap on gas prices. Fin Min also wants Reliance Industries to deliver the shortfall in gas promised to the government at old rates of $4.2mmbtu.

The finance ministry in a note to oil ministry said it wants Reliance Industry to pay up as production goes up. RIL will be the biggest beneficiary of the gas price hike. RIL stock is trading at Rs. 868 up Rs. 12 or 1.4%.  

 

Earlier, the government announced gas prices to nearly double to $8.42/mmbtu from $4.2/mmbtu effective April '14, as the government seeks to move the industry from a fixed-price regime to one which is driven by market prices.

GMR Group’s 2nd 350 MW unit successfully synchronized

The second 350 MW unit of the GMR Group’s coal-based thermal power plant at Kamalanga in Odisha’s Dhenkanal District was successfully synchronized with the grid on July 9, 2013. The first unit of 350 MW was declared commercially operational on April 30, 2013. With this, the combined generation capacity of the GMR Group has reached 1836 MW.

The Bangalore headquartered global infrastructure major with interests in Airports, Energy, Highways and Urban Infrastructure is establishing the 4x350 MW GMR Kamalanga Energy Limited (GKEL) in two phases of 3x350 MW and 1x350 MW, respectively. Work on commissioning the third unit of 350 MW in the first phase is in advanced stages and is likely to be completed by August 2013. GKEL would supply power to Odisha, Bihar, Haryana and other parts of the country.

Speaking on the occasion, GKEL President R.V. Sheshan said, “GKEL is one of the largest GMR investments in the Energy sector. It is also one of the earliest private power projects to commence commercial operation in the state of Odisha. The fuel for the project will be supplied by Mahanadi Coalfields Limited and captive coal mine (Rampia) allocated by Government of India. After commissioning all the three units of 350 MW each in the first phase, we will begin work on the second and final phase of the project.”

BGR bags Rs 1,573 cr contract from OPGC

 BGR  Energy Systems Ltd has bagged the balance of plant (BoP) contract valued at Rs 1,573 crore from Odisha Power Generation Corporation Ltd (OPGC) for its expansion project wherein the state owned generator would add two 660 Mw units to its existing power station.

The contract includes supply, erection and commissioning of the BoP for OPGC's two units to be added at its Banharpalli plant near Jharsuguda. OPGC presently operates two 210 Mw units at the site.

The contract was signed by Venkatachalam Kuppusami, managing director, OPGC and A Swaminathan, director (sales & marketing) at BGR Energy Systems.

"BGR has emerged as the successful bidder for the BoP contract. Earlier, we had awarded the contract for the main plant equipment (boiler, turbine and generator) valued at Rs 4051 crore to Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL). OPGC has already achieved financial closure for the project. Physical construction of the expansion project will begin in 2-3 months”, said Kuppusami.

P K Jena, OPGC chairman and secretary (energy) said, “We have possibly got the best bidding price for the expansion project and our generation cost will be Rs 4.62 crore per Mw which is very competitive in the market. All our statutory clearances are in place and now it is the time to start construction work. We see no problems with respect to land acquisition for mining coal from our allocated block and we hope that the two 660 Mw  units are commissioned before March 2017.”

Speaking on the occasion, state chief secretary J K Mohapatra said, “This project is coming up in a challenging and turbulent time when there is a sense of despondency in the economy. Public investments in the power sector have to be stepped up.”

The expansion plan of OPGC, a 51:49 joint venture between the Odisha government and US-based AES Corporation Ltd, involved addition of two supercritical units, each of 660 Mw, being taken up at a cost of Rs 11,547 crore which also includes cost of other components like coal block development and dedicated rail corridor .  The Ministry of Coal had allocated the Manoharpur and Manoharpur dip side coal blocks to OPGC.

The state utility in November 2012, tied up funding of Rs 8660 crore from Power Finance Corporation (PFC) and Rural Electrification (REC), by executing a loan agreement with the two Central PSUs. The balance funding is to be borne proportionately by the Odisha government and AES.

Gammon India to sell Mumbai property to cut Rs 2000 cr-debt

Debt-ridden Gammon India is likely to sell its 185 acre Dombivali property in Mumbai, reports CNBC-TV18 quoting sources. The company’s current debt stands at around Rs 3,500 crore and aims to cut it by Rs 2,000 crore by asset sale, sources add.

CFO Girish Bhat recently told CNBC-TV18 that its corporate debt restructuring (CDR) package , which includes a two-year moratorium plus eight years of repayment schedule, is almost through.

Gammon India has an exposure of Rs 14,000 crore to a consortium of eight banks led by ICICI Bank and Canara Bank . Banks of around Rs 10,000 crore of the debt is in the form of non-fund based exposure, and Rs 4,000 crore is fund-based exposure. The debt is supported by bank guarantees and letters of credit.

RCom gains after completing securitization of a transaction

Reliance Communications rose 1.46% to Rs 142.25 at 13:12 IST on BSE after the company said it has completed securitisation of proceeds under the Rs 1200 crore intercity Fibre Agreement signed with Reliance Jio Infocomm.

On BSE, 17.39 lakh shares were traded in the counter as against average daily volume of 66.11 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The stock hit a high of Rs 144.90 and a low of Rs 141.40 so far during the day. The stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 149.55 on 8 July 2013. The stock had hit a record low of Rs 46.60 on 30 August 2012.

The stock had outperformed the market over the past one month till 10 July 2013, jumping 26.31% compared with the Sensex's 0.76% fall. The scrip had also outperformed the market in past one quarter, surging 91.53% as against Sensex's 4.78% gain.
The large-cap telecom company has equity capital of Rs 1032.01 crore. Face value per share is Rs 5.

Reliance Communications (RCOM) said that it has completed securitisation of proceeds under the Rs 1200 crore ($200 million) intercityFibre Agreement signed with Reliance Jio Infocomm in April 2013. RCom said that the proceeds from securitisation have been utilised to repay high cost rupee debt, resulting in significant interest cost savings for the company. The securitisation has been completed with Indian and foreign banks. Deliveries of inter city fibre links to Reliance Jio have already commenced. The total deliveries of 1.2 lakh kms inter city fibre under the Agreement are expected to be completed within the current financial year, RCom said.

RCom's consolidated net profit declined 8.7% to Rs 303 crore on 8.9% growth in net sales to Rs 4985 crore in Q4 March 2013 over Q4 March 2012.

UltraTech Cement gains after commissioning clinkerisation plant in Karnataka

UltraTech Cement rose 1.43% at Rs 1,980 12:33 IST on BSE after the company said it has commissioned its clinkerisation plant of 3.3 million tonnes per annum at Malkhed in Karnataka.

The announcement was made after market hours on Wednesday, 10 July 2013

On BSE, 3,437 shares were traded in the counter as against average daily volume of 30,833 shares in the past one quarter.

The stock hit a high of Rs 1,990 and a low of Rs 1,962 so far during the day. The stock had hit a record high of Rs 2,074.80 on 12 October 2012. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 1,538 on 10 July 2012.

The stock had outperformed the market over the past one month till 10 July 2013, rising 3.28% compared with the Sensex's 0.76% fall. The scrip had also outperformed the market in past one quarter, surging 9.22% as against Sensex's 4.78% gain. The large-cap cement maker has equity capital of Rs 274.19 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10.

UltraTech Cement's net profit declined 16.3% to Rs 726.20 crore on 1% growth in net sales to Rs 5389.21 crore in Q4 March 2013 over Q4 March 2012.

About UltraTech Cement:
UltraTech Cement manufactures and markets ordinary portland cement, portland slag cement and portland pozzalana cement, ready mix concrete (RMC), white cement, building products and offers building solutions. UltraTech has plants spanning India, UAE, Bahrain, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The company is the largest manufacturer of white cement in India.

Adani Enterprises fixes book closure for dividend & AGM

Adani Enterprises Ltd has informed BSE that the Register of Members & Share Transfer Books of the Company will remain closed from August 01, 2013 to August 08, 2013 (both days inclusive) for the purpose of Payment of Dividend & Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Company to be held on August 08, 2013.

Adani Ports fixes book closure for final dividend & AGM

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd has informed BSE that the Register of Members & Share Transfer Books of the Company will remain closed from August 01, 2013 to August 08, 2013 (both days inclusive) for the purpose of Payment of Final Dividend & Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Company to be held on August 08, 2013

Chidambaram defends Indian policies as growth oriented

Chidambaram emphasised the need for US companies to set up local manufacturing bases in India, saying "it is in the mutual interest of both countries for India to become a large manufacturing economy"

Finance Minister P Chidambaram today invited American companies to establish manufacturing plants in India, as he defended Indian economic policies as growth oriented and WTO complaint, and emphatically raised New Delhi's concerns over the comprehensive immigration reforms.


Chidambaram, who is here on a four-day trip to attend the annual leadership summit of the US-India Business Council and meet his American counterpart Jack Lew, today met leaders of the US corporate sector, who of late have been critical of Indian policies on trade and business related matters.

Massive Gains In Gold As Fed Seen Going Easy On Tapering Plans

MCX Gold futures for August spurt sharply today on ideas that the Fed is in no hurry to cutback on its asset purchases. The metal shot up near $1300 per ounce in Asian trades as the dollar slipped and equities rallied. The yellow metal had consolidated around $1250 per ounce earlier in the week. Gold had eased after a strong US non-farm payrolls data on Friday but has added impressive gains as prices managed to stay above $1200 per ounce. COMEX Gold futures currently trade at $1289.60, up $42.20 per ounce on the day.

Gold futures shot up in tune with the Asian stocks after the US Federal Reserve's policy meeting minutes showed officials were split on the future of the central bank's stimulus program. About half the Fed officials believe the central bank should end its $85 billion-a-month bond-buying program by the end of this year, suggesting the policy makers are divided on the timing of the coming wind-down of the program. Many other participants anticipated that it likely would be appropriate to continue purchases into 2014, the minutes from the June 18-19 meeting said.

Gold jumped after this, which fanned hopes that the easy money measure wouldn't be removed sooner than expected. Gold has benefited from the Fed's stimulus program, as many traders bought the haven asset to protect against perceived risks like higher inflation and a weaker US dollar. Now, these traders worry gold prices will struggle in the absence of the supportive measure.

The US dollar slipped after the FOMC minutes. The currency was supported after the US non-farm payroll comes in much stronger than expected, with 195,000 new jobs created in June. But the situation seems to have turned around as the greenback was sent to a near three week low against the Euro amid a highly volatile trading action in Asia.

The physical demand for gold remains in a decent shape and the recent price destruction is reportedly bringing in good buying from retail investors and central banks in emerging countries. The MCX Gold managed to hold on above Rs 26000 per 10-gram levels in yesterday and sprinted in early moves today. The counter quotes at Rs 261816, up Rs 713 per 10 grams or 2.73% on the day with 4.90% increase in the open interest.

FinMin wants RIL to supply outstanding gas at old rate

The Finance Ministry has called for Reliance Industries  ( RIL ) to deliver outstanding gas at old price of USD 4.2/ million metric British thermal units, reports Nayantara Rai.

The Finmin also sought to put cap on the increased domestic gas price. This was suggested to the oil ministry because Finmin believes upside in price needs to be capped to control unlimited gains. However companies can reap gains with upswing in global price, sources said.

There was never any talk of having an upward ceiling or a cap. Finance ministry now wants the oil ministry to put an upward ceiling. It believes that gas producers should not reap in all the benefits especially when there is an upswing in global prices and that is something the oil ministry and finance ministry will have to work out.

Also, CNBC-TV18 has accessed the note written by the finance ministry where it says that because of all the technical problems that Reliance Industries has been having, when production goes up, government should ensure that RIL supplies the shortfall in gas at the old price of USD 4.2/mmBtu. It also mentions that RIL is going to be the biggest beneficiary of new price regime and should not benefit from that new price until it delivers all the outstanding gas promised to the government.

An arbitration process between RIL and the government has also been seen. It will be interesting to see how this progresses because finance ministry has also told the oil ministry to reach a logical conclusion with RIL on outstanding legal issues whether it is towards cost recovery or penalty. As far as ceiling is concerned, gas producers in the country will not be happy about it. The talk of a ceiling was unexpected and the plan was to move to a market-linked regime in five years.

Banks in demand as bond yields slide

IndusInd Bank  (up 4.24%), Bank of Baroda (up 3.46%), Federal Bank (up 3.34%), HDFC Bank (up 3.30%), Yes Bank (up 3.27%), Axis Bank (up 3.08%), Union Bank of India (up 2.69%), Punjab National Bank (up 2.55%), Bank of India (up 2.47%), State Bank of India (up 2.37%), Canara Bank (up 2.32%), IDBI Bank (up 2.29%), ICICI Bank (up 2.24%) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 1.89%), edged higher.
The BSE Bankex was up 2.73% at 13,335.42. It outperformed the BSE Sensex, which was up 1.92% at 19,665.43.
The BSE Bankex had underperformed the market over the past one month till 10 July 2013, falling 6.13% compared with the Sensex's 0.76% fall. The index had also underperformed the market in past one quarter, rising 1.76% as against Sensex's 4.78% rise.
The benchmark 10-year bond yield were down 8 basis points at 7.44% on the back of US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke's statement on Wednesday, 10 July 2013, that the world's biggest economy will continue to need stimulus.
A rise in bond prices, which move inversely to yields, will boost the value of bond holdings of banks. Profits from trading in government bonds form a substantial part of revenue of commercial banks.

Cairn India gains along with crude oil price

Cairn India rose 2.09% to Rs 292.65 at 11:25 IST on BSE as US crude oil futures traded near the highest level in 15 months after crude stockpiles in United States fell for a second week, indicating growth in demand in the world's largest oil consumer

On BSE, 43,000 shares were traded in the counter as against average daily volume of 1.74 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The stock hit a high of Rs 292.85 and a low of Rs 289 so far during the day. The stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 365.90 on 17 September 2012. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 267.90 on 28 March 2013.

The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 10 July 2013, sliding 1% compared with the Sensex's 0.76% fall. The scrip had also underperformed the market in past one quarter, declining 2.32% as against Sensex's 4.78% gain.

The large-cap company has equity capital of Rs 1910.30 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10.
US crude oil futures for August 2013 delivery were up 49 cents a barrel at $107.01 a barrel in the electronic trading today, 11 July 2013. The contract had surged $2.99 a barrel or 2.88% to settle at $106.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Wednesday, 10 July 2013, its highest closing level since 27 March 2012. Higher crude oil prices will result in higher realizations from crude sales for oil exploration firms like Cairn India.

Crude inventories in the United States dropped by 9.87 million barrels last week, as per the data released on Wednesday, 10 July 2013 by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Total US crude inventories declined to 373.9 million barrels, the lowest level since February, the data showed. United States is the world's biggest oil consumer.

Meanwhile, Egypt ordered the arrest of the Muslim Brotherhood leader, escalating a confrontation between Islamists and an army-backed interim administration.

Cairn India's consolidated net profit rose 17.3% to Rs 2563.60 crore on 19.5% growth in net sales to Rs 4363.36 crore in Q4 March 2013 over Q4 March 2012. The company unveils Q1 June 2013 results on 24 July 2013.

Cairn India is primarily engaged in the business of oil and gas exploration, production and transportation. The company sells its oil to major refineries in India and its gas to both public sector units and private buyers.

HDFC AMC plans to sell stake in Nitesh Housing

Nitesh Housing Developers is in talks with private equity investors to raise around Rs 3.50bn, report was quoted as saying.

Reports said that HDFC Asset Management Company, the portfolio manager of HDFC Mutual Fund is planning to sell its entire stake in Nitesh Housing Developers, a subsidiary of Bangalore-based Nitesh Estates.

The fund house had acquired 10.1% stake in the subsidiary of the real estate developer for Rs 68 crore in 2009.

Nitesh Housing Developers owns four projects in Bangalore - Hyde Park, Columbus Square, Napa Valley and Fisher Island - spread across 10 million sq ft.

Nitesh Housing Developers is in talks with private equity investors to raise around Rs 3.50bn, report was quoted as saying.

Government to release IIP, CPI data after market hours

Key macroeconomic data including gross domestic product (GDP) and index of industrial production (IIP) numbers will now be released after market hours, in an apparent bid by the government to prevent any knee-jerk reaction to such information.

According to a statement available on the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation website, GDP, consumer price index (CPI) and IIP will now be released at 5.30 p.m.

A source said the government has taken this decision in view of deteriorating markets and the depreciating rupee.

Andhra Bank slips ex-dividend

Andhra Bank fell 4.36% to Rs 82.20 at 9:24 IST on BSE after turning ex-dividend today, 11 July 2013, for dividend of Rs 5 per share for the year ended 31 March 2013.

On BSE, 40,000 shares were traded in the counter as against an average daily volume of 1.72 lakh shares in the past one quarter.
The stock hit a high of Rs 83 and a low of Rs 81.35 so far during the day. The stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 130 on 8 January 2013. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 78.15 on 25 June 2013.

The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 10 July 2013, sliding 1.09% compared with the Sensex's 0.76% fall. The scrip had also underperformed the market in past one quarter, falling 6.83% as against Sensex's 4.78% rise.

The mid-cap company has an equity capital of Rs 559.58 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10.

Before turning ex-dividend, the stock offered a dividend yield of 5.82% based on the closing price of Rs 85.95 on Wednesday, 10 July 2013.

Net profit of Andhra Bank rose 1.45% to Rs 344.58 crore on 15% rise in operating income to Rs 3713.06 crore in Q4 March 2013 over Q4 March 2012.


The Government of India (GoI) holds 58% stake in Andhra Bank (as on 30 June 2013).

Markets to see some recovery on sanguine global cues

The Indian markets suffered selling in last session mainly on global cues and some on the reports that finance ministry has mooted cap on gas prices, asking Reliance Industries to sell the quantity of gas by which it has fallen short of targets during the past three years at the present rate of $4.2 per unit. Though, the oil & gas sector is likely to remain under pressure even today with the proposals, but the markets are likely to get a good start tailing sanguine global cues. Meanwhile, in view of deteriorating markets and depreciating rupee the government has decided that key macroeconomic data including GDP and IIP numbers will now be released after market hours. Now GDP, CPI and Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data will be released at 5.30 PM in the evening. Traders will also be eyeing the movement of rupee and bullion as the dollar slumped and gold jumped to its highest in more than two weeks after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the US central bank will continue to pursue an accommodative monetary policy for now. Jewellery exporters may see some upmove on the report that government is considering incentives for gold jewellery exporters hit by restrictions imposed on import of the metal to contain current account deficit.

The US markets went through a choppy day of trade in last session and after remaining directionless for most part of the day, lost some gains on release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting, which indicated that the central bank is moving closer to tapering its asset purchase program. The Asian markets have made a good start with most of the indices trading considerably higher, as US Fed Chief said the world’s biggest economy will continue to need stimulus.

Back home, Wednesday’s trading session turned out to be a disappointing one for the Indian equity markets, as investors booked profit after last session’s rally ahead of the start of official Q1FY14 earnings  season with Infosys’ releasing its Q1 numbers on Friday. Investors also turned cautious tracking weakness in rupee, the Indian currency after recovering in last session on the SEBI and RBI’s measures to control its fall, once again depreciated in early deals, despite RBI’s further efforts to check the fall, asking each state-run oil company to buy dollars from a single bank. Sentiments also got dented after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut India’s growth outlook for 2013-14 to 5.6 percent from the 5.8 percent it projected in April. Supportive cues from US markets provided the much needed support to local bourses initially. Investors’ morale got buttressed with Alcoa reporting a better than expected second quarter numbers. Moreover, most of the Asian counters too ended in the green on Wednesday. However, weakness in European market took their toll on domestic sentiments in second half and dragged the frontline gauges below their psychological levels. Back home, selling in index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) too weighed on sentiments after Finance Ministry in its latest gas pricing formula reportedly told Oil Ministry that RIL must deliver outstanding gas at old rate of $4.2 and that upside needs to be capped as it cannot allow unlimited gains to the cdespite indicating tapering ompanies. Selling in shares of public sector oil marketing companies like BPCL, HPCL and IOC too dampened the sentiments as Crude oil prices moved higher and the Nymex crude surged to its fourteen-month high, tracking gains in the global equity markets and fears of supply disruption through the Suez Canal, on the increasingly fluid situation in Egypt. Finally, the BSE Sensex lost 145.36 points or 0.75% to settle at 19,294.12, while the CNX Nifty declined by 42.30 points or 0.72% to end at 5,816.70.

Asian shares hit 3-week high on Bernanke's comments

Financial markets have recently sold off on concerns that the Fed may begin to scale back its $85 billion a month bond-buying programme as soon as September.

But Bernanke's remarks, which played down the strength of last week's June payrolls report, prompted investors to reassess the risk of an early end to the Fed's programme. They cut long dollar positions and sent U.S. Treasuries prices higher.

"I was pretty shocked with this selloff this morning. Obviously, Bernanke kicked it all off, but it was a bit of a delayed reaction," said Bart Wakabayashi, head of forex at State Street Global Markets in Tokyo.

"I'm hearing there were some margin calls, stop losses triggered there, and it moved down, so it seems like it's pretty thin and maybe some Asian players were trying to unwind their dollar longs.

"But it does seem like a bit of an overreaction. Having said that, it's a bit surprising, all of a sudden, the change in the tone of Bernanke, so it's a whole new world all of a sudden."

The dollar index added 0.3 percent after dropping 1.8 percent on Wednesday - a magnitude not seen since 2008-2009 at the height of the global financial crisis.

The euro surged 1.4 percent after earlier hitting a three-week high of $1.32085. Against the yen, the dollar eased 0.3 percent after falling to a two-week low of 98.20 yen.

Commodity currencies also jumped against its U.S. peer with the Australian dollar climbing as high as $0.9300, putting further distance from a 34-month trough of $0.9036 plumbed just last week.

The Australian dollar was also aided by a surprise increase in Australian employment in June, a result that may lessen the chance of the central bank lowering interest rates further in the short-term.

M&M to observe 'No Production Days'

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd has announced that the Company, as part of aligning its production with sales requirements, would be observing 'No Production Days' at its Automotive Plants for a period ranging from 1 to 8 days during the remaining period of July, 2013.
Further the Company would also informed that one of its wholly owned subsidiaries viz. Mahindra Vehicle Manufacturers Limited would also be observing 'No Production Days' for about 8 days during the remaining period of July 2013 at its Plant situated at Chakan.
The Management does not envisage any adverse impact on availability of vehicles in the market due to adequacy of vehicle stocks to serve the market requirements.

Gap up opening for Sensex, Nifty

A lot may be accomplished in the market without anything really happening except that the Fed had reiterated something he spoke recently. Policymakers have learned the hard way to treat financial stability as a top goal, said Bernanke who says he has reserved his comments for July 17-19 when he will address the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee and the Senate Banking Committee.

The minutes from the Fed's June meeting showed many of the 12 Fed voting officials said they need to see further improvement in the job market before mulling winding down the stimulus program. Bernanke however didn't signal any changes in the Fed's bond-buying program, which has kept long-term interest rates low and encouraged more borrowing and spending.

A strong start is in the offing for the Indian market. Besides positive global indications, the domestic currency too seems to be in control. Government action to arrest the free fall seems to be working; the Indian Rupee closed at Rs. 59.78 closing below the Rs. 60/$level.

The Dow Jones fell marginally, the S&P 500 closed flat while the Nasdaq gained half a percent.

Japan's Nikkei 225 is flat while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index is 1.5% up. South Korea's Kospi index has gained almost 2% while China's Shanghai index is up 1.5%.

US crude oil prices added 0.2 percent after trading as high as $106.95 a barrel.
The finance ministry has asked the oil ministry to consider putting a cap on natural gas prices under the formula approved by a Cabinet panel last month. The companies in this sector already saw some weakness on account of this news on Wednesday.

A decision on increasing foreign direct investment limits could be postponed beyond this month as key ministers have not yet submitted their views on the same.

IndusInd Bank emerged as the front runner to buy Royal Bank of Scotland's India retail assets and a deal could be announced as early as next week, says a report adding that besides IndusInd Bank, others in the fray include Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank and Standard Chartered Bank.

IndusInd Bank Q1 FY14 net profit is up 42% year-on-year at Rs. 3.35bn.

Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates have pledged $8 bn aid to Egypt.

AGMs today include Federal Bank, JSL Industries and Kakatiya Cement.

Malabar Trading Co board will meet today to consider fund raising

Kalindee Rail Nirman (Engineers) could be in focus as it considers fund raising.

KEI Industries will consider allotment of shares and convertible warrants on a preferential basis National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority has capped prices of 25 widely used drugs including painkillers and antibiotics.

TRAI has issued new guidelines for activation and de-activation of value-added services.