Sensex sees sixth slide

In past six trading sessions, BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty have now fallen nearly 6% while the bank Nifty has plunged nearly by 9%.

The Indian stock market extended its losing streak for the sixth consecutive trading session as traders and investors preferred to remain cautious ahead of the key economic data like the  September IIP and October CPI data to be released later in the day.

In addition, the Indian rupee’s constant weakness against the US$ and worries of the FED tapering its stimulus package continued to dent the sentiment on Dalal Street. The rupee fell against the dollar for the fifth consecutive day, coming close to the Rs64 per dollar mark

If that was not enough, October domestic sales declined by 3.88%, snapping a two-month streak of positive growth as the sector continued to reel under weak macro-economic conditions. Motorcycle manufacturers, however, had reasons to celebrate in October, posting the highest sales volume in a single month since 1997-1998. Domestic passenger car sales in October stood at 1,63,199 units as against 1,69,788 in the same month last year.

Among the top losers were the BSE Metal index down 1.8% followed by BSE Power index down 1.75%, BSE Auto index down 1.6%, BSE Banking index down 1.6%. Even the BSE Mid-Cap and Small-Cap index were down 0.7% each.

Only the BSE FMCG index gained by half a percent during the day the only index to close in the positive terrain.

Finally, BSE Sensex closed at 20,282 down 209 points, while NSE Nifty closed at 6,018 down 60 points over the previous close.

JP Associates, Tata Motors, Axis Bank, DLF, Tata Power, Asian Paints, PNB, ICICI Bank and Bank of Baroda were among the top losers.

On the other hand, Ranbaxy, M&M, ITC, Cairn India, Sun Pharma and Kotak Bank were among the top gainers in the Nifty.

The advance-decline ratio favoured the bears. On the BSE, 1479 stocks declined against 985 advancing stocks, while 126 remained unchanged.
The INDIA VIX was up 4.4% at 20.86. It hit a day’s high of 20.86 and low of 18.73.

Stock News 

Shares of Hindalco slightly edged lower by half a percent and ended at Rs111 per share on Tuesday. Commenting on the same, Amar Ambani Head of Research at IIFL said, “Hindalco’s topline of Rs63bn was lower than our estimate due to weaker volume growth in the copper business. Copper production volumes declined 1.3% yoy to 77,000 tons. The company’s operating profit was impacted by higher coal costs. The impact of weaker aluminium EBIT was offset by stronger than expected copper business EBIT. We believe the company’s earnings would soar in FY15 boosted by the increase in volumes in both, Novelis as well as aluminium business. We maintain our buy rating on the stock with a price target of Rs129.”

Idea Cellular slashed 2G data tariffs by up to 90% across the country and 3G tariffs by as much as 33% for six months starting November 15. The reduced tariffs will be available to existing and new prepaid and postpaid users. The stock edged higher by 0.3% to close at Rs160.

Britannia Industries surged 3.7% to close at Rs909 after the company posted a net profit of Rs956.8mn for the quarter ended September 30, 2013 as compared to Rs. 456mn for the quarter ended September 30, 2012.

Shares of Canara Bank gained by 1% to close at Rs250. The bank reported a year-on-year fall of 5.59% in the net profit number to Rs6.25bn for the quarter ended September 30..

Shares of Corporation Bank plummeted by 9% to close at Rs274 after bank reported a 96% drop in net profit for the quarter ended September 30.

Shares of National Aluminium was up 4% after the company posted a net profit of Rs791mn for the quarter ended September 30, 2013 as compared to Rs47.8mn for the quarter ended September 30, 2012.

Kwality gains on acquiring fixed assets of Varshney Bandhu Foods

Kwality is currently trading at Rs. 28.55, up by 0.55 points or 1.96 % from its previous closing of Rs. 28.00 on the BSE.

The scrip opened at Rs. 28.25 and has touched a high and low of Rs. 29.05 and Rs. 27.60 respectively. So far 127208 shares were traded on the counter.

The BSE group 'B' stock of face value Rs. 1 has touched a 52 week high of Rs. 38.70 on 07-Jan-2013 and a 52 week low of Rs. 18.00 on 08-Oct-2013.

Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 28.80 and Rs. 25.00 respectively. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 580.10 crore.

The promoters holding in the company stood at 74.88% while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 0.41% and 24.71% respectively.

Kwality has acquired fixed assets of Varshney Bandhu Foods situated at Khasra No. 902, Village Mumrejpur, Tehsil Dibai, District Bulandsahar, in state of Uttar Pradesh.

Canara Bank Q2 profits down 5.29%

Canara Bank has reported 5.29 per cent lower profits at Rs 625.94 crore for the second quarter of the financial year 2013-14 compared with Rs 660.97 crore in the same period last year.

Total income of the bank for the second quarter is higher by 13.29 per cent at Rs 10,427.48 crore compared with Rs 9,203.61 crore recorded in the same quarter last year. EPS stood at 14.13 against 14.92 recorded last year.

Bank’s gross NPA for Q2 is Rs 7,475.07 crore (last year Rs 5,609.53 crore). Percentage of gross NPA 2.64 per cent (2.58 per cent). Net NPA is Rs 6,459.30 crore (last year Rs 4,568.57 crore). Percentage of net NPA 2.30 per cent (2.12 per cent).

Segment revenue: treasury operations Rs 2,544.47 crore (last year Rs 2,537.54), retail banking operations Rs 2,628.28 crore (Rs 2,487.18 crore), wholesale banking operations Rs 5,102.89 crore (Rs 4,133.04 crore), other banking operations Rs nil (Rs nil) and unallocated Rs 151.84 crore (Rs 45.85 crore).

Pref allotment

Canara Bank’s board of directors at its meeting today has approved the proposal regarding raising of capital by way of Preferential Allotment of Equity Shares in favour of the Government of India amounting to Rs 500 crore.

Further, the board has delegated the authority to the Chairman and Managing Director of the bank to decide on the matters connected with capital rising.

Indices lackluster; realty; healthcare scrips up

Some buying activity is seen in realty, healthcare and FMCG sectors on BSE, while metal, auto and power sectors are losing sheen.

At 12:58 PM, S&P BSE Sensex is 20,481 down 9 points, while CNX Nifty is at 6,078 down 0.35 points. September IIP and October CPI data will be closely eyed today.

BSE Mid-cap is at 6,189 up 28 points, while BSE Small-cap is at 5,988 up 12 points.

Some buying activity is seen in realty, healthcare and FMCG sectors on BSE, while metal, auto and power sectors are losing sheen.

Hindalco, Maruti Suzuki, Wipro, Sun Pharma, ITC and Bajaj Auto are up on BSE, whereas SSLT, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, ONGC, Coal India and Gail are showing some weakness.

Rcom and Fortis Healthcare results will be in focus today. Hindalco results will mostly be announced after market hours.

Larsen & Toubro subsidiary L&T Infrastructure Development Projects Ltd (L&T IDPL) has won Rs. 12.93 billion road project in Odisha. L&T is 0.36% up on BSE.

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation posted net profit of Rs. 3189.20 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2013 as compared to Rs. 23270.90 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2012. The scrip is 0.88% up on BSE.

National Aluminium Company is 2.37% up on BSE on the news that the company posted a net profit of Rs. 1791.70 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2013 as compared to Rs. 47.80 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2012.

Britannia Industries gained 4.37% on BSE on the news that the company posted a net profit of Rs. 956.80 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2013 as compared to Rs. 456.00 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2012.

India’s merchandise trade deficit stood at $10.6 billion in October – almost half of what it was a year ago – as exports grew by a healthy 13.5% and imports contracted due to a continued sharp decline in non-oil imports.

Exports have grown at over 10% in each of the last 4 months (July to October 2013) boosted by a weak rupee and rising global demand on the back of a gradual recovery in US and Europe. During July-October, the rupee was 13% weaker than a year ago.

The Reserve Bank of India on Monday has cancelled the requirement of No Objection Certificate (NoC) with regard to share transfer from residents to non-residents where the investee company is in the financial services sector.

The RBI has allowed SEBI-registered foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and qualified foreign investors (QFIs) to invest in the credit enhanced bonds up to $5 billion.
These investments would be within the overall limit of $51 billion earmarked for corporate debt.

Nikkei closed 318 points up at 14,588, while Hang Seng is 123 points down at 22,846.

HPCL may begin crude oil imports from Iran soon

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) may start importing crude oil from sanctions-hit Iran from December, if the issue over insurance of ships ferrying oil is resolved.

“The Ministry has given feedback that it (insurance problem) would be resolved. This month, things would get formalised. For the remaining four months, we can get around 0.8 million tonnes from Iran,” said B.K. Namdeo, Director (Refineries) of HPCL.

Insurance issue

However, Namdeo cautioned that unless the insurance issue gets resolved, HPCL would not place any order with Iran. In 2013-14, the Government-owned refiner has not imported any crude oil from the Islamic nation. Last fiscal, HPCL had bought about 2.3 mt of crude oil from Iran.

Indian Energy Insurance Pool

India proposes to set up Rs 2,000-crore Indian Energy Insurance Pool to help refineries get Iranian crude oil. Though Indian insurance companies are not governed by the US and the EU sanctions, they do depend on re-insurance from Western companies because of the high risks involved.

Iran's nuclear programme

The sanctions against Iran’s disputed nuclear programme discourage global re-insurers from taking on the risk.

Namdeo said that HPCL has substituted Iranian crude oil with more supplies from Iraq. In the current financial year, the refiner and oil marketing company would import nearly 5 mt from Iraq. It also buys crude oil from Saudi Arabia.

HPCL has a crude oil demand for nearly 11-12 million tonnes a year.

Vizag refinery

HPCL targets to fully operate its Vizag refinery from February. The Government-owned company had partly shut down the plant after a major fire in August.

Right now, the refinery is processing about 17-18 thousand million tonnes (TMT), which would go up to 23 TMT in December. From February, it would achieve its full capacity of around 26.5 TMT, Namdeo added.

HPCL shares were trading at Rs 212.55, up 0.66 per cent at around 12.50 pm on the BSE.

Maruti Suzuki trades green on the BSE

Maruti Suzuki is currently trading at Rs. 1613.75, up by 27.85 points or 1.76% from its previous closing of Rs. 1585.70 on the BSE.

The scrip opened at Rs. 1586.00 and has touched a high and low of Rs. 1621.90 and Rs. 1586.00 respectively. So far 29,000 shares were traded on the counter.

The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 5 has touched a 52 week high of Rs. 1773.45 on 20-May-2013 and a 52 week low of Rs. 1217.00 on 28-Aug-2013.

Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 1645.80 and Rs. 1557.70 respectively. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 48,755 crore.

The promoters holding in the company stood at 56.21% while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 35.02% and 8.78% respectively.

Maruti Suzuki India, country’s largest car maker, has registered jump of 1.9% in its total car sales (Domestic + Export) for the month of October at 105087 units, as against 103108 units in October 2012. The company’s domestic sales also rose by 0.1% in October 2013 at 96062 units, as against 96002 units in corresponding month last year.

Sun Pharmaceutical trades higher on the bourses

Sun Pharmaceutical is currently trading at Rs. 602.90, up by 6.00 points or 1.01% from its previous closing of Rs. 596.90 on the BSE.

The scrip opened at Rs. 598.90 and has touched a high and low of Rs. 607.95 and Rs. 597.55 respectively. So far 38,000 shares were traded on the counter.

The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 1 has touched a 52 week high of Rs. 650.00 on 09-Oct-2013 and a 52 week low of Rs. 328.00 on 15-Nov-2012.

Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 616.00 and Rs. 586.25 respectively. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 1, 24,866 crore.

The promoters holding in the company stood at 63.65% while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 25.95% and 10.40% respectively.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, an international specialty pharmaceutical company focused on chronic diseases, and Intrexon Corporation, a leader in synthetic biology, have formed a joint venture (JV) to develop controllable gene-based therapies for the treatment of ocular diseases that cause partial or total blindness in millions of people worldwide. Initial targets are dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD), glaucoma and retinitis pigmentosa.

The joint venture will leverage Sun Pharma's global capabilities and experience in developing and manufacturing complex dosage forms and specialty pharmaceuticals for niche therapy areas. Intrexon and Sun Pharma will share in both the financing of, and the revenues from, the joint venture.

Through an Exclusive Channel Collaboration (ECC), the joint venture will have access to Intrexon's full suite of proprietary synthetic biology technologies, including the RheoSwitch Therapeutic System (RTS) platform. RTS is a clinically validated method for controlling the location, concentration and timing of protein expression. RTS may address a longstanding limitation of current approaches by enabling patients to receive a targeted biologic therapy without having to endure a lifetime of injections.

Exports zoom 13.47% to $27.27 bn in Oct

Fall in gold, non-oil imports help narrow trade gap to $10.56 bn, almost half that in same month of 2012

The rupee's depreciation against the dollar might have left many worried but it has a bright side, too. Boosted mainly by the rupee's weakness since July and a demand revival in key markets, India's merchandise exports in October soared to $27.27 billion from $24.03 billion in the same month last year - an increase of 13.47 per cent, the highest since 23.7 per cent seen in October 2011.

The increase in October, the fourth straight month of double-digit export growth rate, was in stark contrast with a dull phase from the beginning of last financial year to June this year. In 2012-13, the country's total exports had fallen 1.76 per cent from the previous year to $300.60 billion. The contraction had continued in May and June this year. But India's exports have grown at a double-digit rate in each of the four months since July. During the July-October period, the rupee's value against the dollar declined 13 per cent compared with the year-ago period.

"We are seeing consistent double-digit export growth rates. All major sectors with significant contribution in the export market have shown a positive trend… We are confident of reaching the export target (of $325 billion) this financial year," Commerce Secretary S R Rao said while releasing the data here.

Rao said exports to all major regions of the US, Europe, Africa and Asean were rising. Those to South Asia and Latin America were, however, marginally low.

Imports, on the other hand, have been falling continuously since June - at double-digit rates since September. In October, imports stood at $37.82 billion, down 14.5 per cent from $44.24 billion in the same month a year ago. This narrowed the trade gap in the month to $10.56 billion, almost half that in the same month last year, showed data released by the commerce & industry ministry on Monday.

However, on a month-on-month basis, imports were higher than September's $6.7 billion. This was partly due to $1.3-billion gold imports in October 2013 - 62.5 per cent higher than the previous month's $0.8 billion but 80 per cent lower than $6.8-billion gold imports in October 2012. The total imports of gold and silver during the April-October period this year dipped 12.86 from those in the year-ago period to $24.5 billion, mainly due to various curbs imposed by the government.

Rao said the sharp fall in gold imports in September was because confusion over the Reserve Bank of India's 80:20 scheme led to imports being held up at Customs.

The total exports during the first seven months of the financial year through October rose 6.32 per cent to $179.38 billion, compared with $168.71 billion in the same period last year. Cumulative imports during the same period stood at $270.06 billion, against $280.73 billion, down 3.80 per cent.

The total trade deficit during the April-October period reached $90.68 billion, compared with $112.03 billion during the corresponding period of 2012-13. The government aims to lower its current account deficit, which includes trade deficit, to $60 billion in 2013-14, from $88 billion the previous year.

The rupee's depreciation is helping narrow the trade gap, as outbound shipments are increasing. So, it seems the currency's fall, contrary to the general belief, is actually helping fight a soaring trade deficit.

According to CRISIL, exports have been rising due to a weak rupee and rising global demand on the back of a gradual recovery in the US and Europe. A weaker rupee helps boost exports by raising the relative price competitiveness of Indian goods, particularly in export sectors like textiles and agricultural products.

Besides a weak currency, low domestic demand also helped contain imports. Non-oil imports in October reached $22.60 billion, 22.80 per cent lower than $29.28 billion in the same month last year. Cumulatively, non-oil imports during the April-October period reached $171.96 billion, down 7.43 per cent from $185.76 billion during the same period last year.

The non-oil, non-gold imports so far this year stand at $147.46 billion, 6.46 per cent lower than $157.66 billion in the corresponding period last year.

A lot of import substitution has happened due to a weaker rupee, but this also points to lack of demand for these products in the country. This is buttressed by the fact that industrial growth in the first five months of the current financial year stood at 0.1 per cent, despite the low base of 0.2 per cent in the comparable period of last year.

Oil imports, on the other hand, have reached $15.21 billion in October 2013, up 1.7 per cent from $14.95 billion in the month last year. Total oil imports till October grew 3.3 per cent to $98 billion from $94.9 billion, the data showed.

International price trends were also partly responsible. The crude oil prices fell to $103 a barrel last week, the lowest in the past four months. Similarly, coal prices hit a low of $76.45 a tonne on July 10 this year; but these have risen 6.5 per cent since.

Exports of agricultural products, engineering goods and electronics showed healthy growth in October.

"While exports have shown a convincing rebound, the tempo can be sustained and improved by making Indian products more competitive in the global market, where green shoots are visible. The finance ministry should immediately address the issue of duty drawbacks," said Anupam Shah, chairman, Engineering Exports Promotion Council.

The Federation of Indian Export Organisations pegged the trade deficit for this financial year at about $140 billion, which it said would ease pressure on the current account deficit, bringing it down to $50 billion in 2013-2014.

Rupee trading weak at 63.44 on dollar demand

The rupee opened 9 paise weak at 63.35 per dollar after ending at a two-month low of 63.26 against the American currency in the previous session due to persistent dollar demand from importers and a stronger dollar overseas.

At 9.44 a.m., the domestic unit was trading weak at 63.44 per dollar.

Persistent dollar demand from oil importers and banks due to stronger dollar weighed on the rupee sentiment, a forex dealer said.

Last week, Economic Affairs Secretary, Arvind Mayaram, had said that the state-run oil companies were sourcing 30-40 per cent of the dollar requirement through the open market and not via the special window provided by RBI.

QE tapering

According to Upasna Bhardwaj, Economist, ING Vysya Bank, even as CAD concerns have abated and significantly lower capital flows are needed to finance the same, fears of early QE tapering by the Fed and withdrawal of temporary measures by the Reserve Bank of India in the subsequent weeks are expected to bring the rupee further under pressure.

“We expect the rupee to trade in the 62-64 range in the near term, with a further shift towards 63-66 per dollar in the next quarter,” she said
.

Call rates, G-secs

The overnight call money rates, the rate at which banks borrow short-term funds from each other, opened flat from the previous close of 8.75 per cent.

Yield on the 10-year benchmark 7.16 per cent 2023 government bond remained flat at 8.95 per cent from its previous close. Bond prices remained at Rs 88.66.

Goa Carbon shines on reporting 1,719 MT of Calcined Petroleum Coke production for October 2013

Goa Carbon has reported production of 1,719.400 MT (million tonnes) of Calcined Petroleum Coke for the month of October 2013. Of the total production achieved for the month, the Bilaspur plant of the company produced 1,719.400 MT respectively.

On the sales front, the company has sold total of 7,270.374 MT of Calcined Petroleum Coke product for the month of October 2013. Of the total sale achieved for the month, Bilaspur plant, Goa plant and Paradeep plant of the company sold 1,306.400 MT, 779.618 MT and 5,184.356 MT respectively.

Goa Carbon is into the business of manufacturing and marketing Calcined Petroleum Coke. Goa Carbon is firmly established as a leading Indian petcoke calciner. It is a regular supplier to aluminium smelters, graphite electrode and Titanium Dioxide manufacturers, as well as other users in the metallurgical and chemical industries.

Corporation Bank dips on worsening assets quality

The stock was down 6% at Rs 283 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Corporation Bank has dipped 6% to Rs 283 after reporting a sharp 96% year-on-year (yoy) decline in net profit at Rs 15.48 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2013 (Q2) due to higher provisioning towards non-performing assets (NPAs). The state-owned bank had profit of Rs 406 crore in the year-ago period.

The bank’s net interest income (NII) however, grew 13% yoy at Rs 910 crore, Corporation Bank said in a statement.

Asset quality pressures for the bank intensified during the quarter, as it reported annualized slippage rate of 4.0%, which resulted in around 40% sequential increase in Gross and Net NPA levels, said analyst at Angel Broking in a note.

During the quarter under review, the bank’s gross bad loan ratio rose to 3.17% from 1.97%, while net NPA ratio increased to 2.20% from 1.38% in the corresponding quarter of previous fiscal.

The stock opened at Rs 285 and hit a low of Rs 279 on BSE. A combined around 75,000 shares have changed hands on the counter so far on BSE and NSE.

TCS recognized with Diamond Award for Marketing Excellence by ITSMA

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a leading IT services, consulting and business solutions organization, has been recognized with the Diamond Award for Marketing Excellence by the Information Technology Services Marketing Association (ITSMA). The software major was recognized in the category of ‘Enabling Sales Channels’ as part of the 16th annual Marketing Excellence Awards program run by the B2B marketing association.

The Marketing Excellence Awards honors the marketing programs, campaigns, and new initiatives that have achieved excellence worldwide. The awards put special emphasis on the four most-critical aspects of marketing success: planning, execution, innovation, and measurable business impact. The award was presented during ITSMA’s Annual Marketing Conference on November 5, 2013, recognizing TCS’s use of marketing channels and market intelligence to drive superior growth and profitability.

Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organisation that delivers real results to global business, ensuring a level of certainty no other firm can match. TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated portfolio of IT, BPO, infrastructure, engineering and assurance services.

RBI receives $17.5 billion of inflows through special swap windows

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has received $ 17.5 billion so far under the special concessional window for swapping foreign currency non-resident (banks) deposits and overseas foreign currency borrowings by banks.

India’s Apex Bank had operationalized these special windows on September 4 to shore-up Indian currency, which had depreciated by 30% between April and August. Through these windows, which are expected to remain open till November 30, RBI allows banks to swap the fresh FCNR (B) dollar funds, mobilised for a minimum tenor of three years and over, at a fixed rate of 3.5% per annum for the tenor of the deposit.

Meanwhile, RBI has also permitted banks to borrow up to 100% of tier I capital from overseas, which can be swapped with the central bank at a concessional rate of 100 basis points below the ongoing swap rate prevailing in the market.

The Indian currency, which has gained nearly 11% from September till date on account of higher dollar inflows and other measures taken by the RBI and the government, has once again been on depreciating streak since past few days after reports suggested of RBI moving back upto 30-40% of state-run oil firms’ demand in the market.

OMOs: Bond market's need of the hour

In November the RBI is auctioning government bonds for a notified amount of Rs 75,000 crore

Tracking the rupee’s weakness, government bond yields may again rise to levels seen in August, in the absence of open market operations (OMOs) by the central bank. In November, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is auctioning government bonds for a notified amount of Rs 75,000 crore, the highest in a month, according to the issuance calendar for marketable dated securities for the second half of this financial year.

On Monday, the yield on the 10-year benchmark 7.16 per cent government bond ended at 8.95 per cent, compared with Friday’s close of 8.99 per cent. On August 19, the yield had ended at 9.23 per cent, the highest so far this financial year. During Monday’s intra-day trade, the yield rose to 9.14 per cent, tracking the weak rupee.

In a post-monetary policy conference call with researchers and analysts last month, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan didn’t give any hint of the timing of OMOs. “There are a variety of instruments we have because of the variety of market forces that can also add liquidity to the system. If government spending picks up, it would certainly add liquidity to the system. Other instruments such as OMOs and deposit growth would also help. But let me not give you a precise timeframe,” he had said.

Starting mid-July, government bond yields began rising, due to RBI’s liquidity-tightening measures. However, the yield had fallen in the recent past due to strengthening of the rupee.

“Unless there is an OMO, with every auction, we could see yields moving up. There is a possibility the yield may rise to August levels. Due to the demand from oil marketing companies returning, the rupee is trading weak. The foreign currency non-resident (bank) deposits window will close after November 30. Then, we will get to know the real strength of the rupee. Tracking the rupee, bond yields will move,” said Anoop Verma, vice-president (treasury), Development Credit Bank.

Due to the central bank’s steps to tighten liquidity, most banks have taken a hit on their treasury portfolios, as yields rose. “Banks are a bit apprehensive on buying more bonds because of the hit banks took in the previous quarter. If this continues, yields may again touch August-end levels,” said S Srinivasaraghavan, head of treasury at Dhanlaxmi Bank.

Market firm up after flat opening

Stock markets opened flat with a positive bias on Tuesday amid mixed cues from Asia.

Stock markets opened flat with a positive bias on Tuesday amid mixed cues from Asia.

At 9:20 am key benchmark indices opened a tad higher with the 30-Share BSE Sensex trading at 20,543 up 54 points while Nifty is at 6097 up over 20 points.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei extended gains and was trading 1.6% higher on Tuesday amid a weaker yen on better-than-expected US jobs report. The Shanghai Composite was up 0.2% while Straits Times and Hang Seng were down 0.1-0.6% each.

At 9:20AM the rupee is trading at 63.43/dollar on Monday, against Friday’s close of 62.48/dollar, a fall of 1.22 per cent. It had opened at 63.01/dollar, tracking the non-deliverable forwards (NDF) market.

Around the same time, the SGX Nifty was flat with a positive bias at 6,122.

US benchmark share indices ended flat with a positive bias on Monday with the DOw Jones closing at a record high after better-than-expected US jobs data last week raised the possibility that the US Fed may start reducing its monetary stimulus measures sooner than expected.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 21.32 points, or 0.1%, to end at 15,783.10. The

Standard & Poor's 500 Index closed 1.28 points higher, or 0.1% higher, at 1,771.89. The

Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.56 points or 0.01% to end at 3,919.79.

In Europe, almost all the major markets closed marginally higher. CAC, DAX and FTSE gained in the range of 0.3-0.7%.

Stocks to watch

Corporation Bank is likely to open lower after the Mangalore-headquartered public sector lenderreported a 96 per cent drop in net profit to Rs 15 crore for the quarter ending September 30.

Wockhardt may see an uptick on news that its board has endorsed the decision of its Switzerland-based arm Wockhardt Bio AG to undertake a European listing.

IOC will be in spotlight as Government will begin roadshows in US today for sale of its 10% stake in nation's largest oil firm, that may fetch as much as Rs 3,900 crore.

Gillette India may see some moves as promoters are likely to sell shares worth over Rs 550 crore through Offer for sale route on Wednesday inorder to comply with Sebi's minimum public shareholding norms.

AstraZeneca may see an uptick as the company's narrowed its loss to Rs.1.22 crore in the July-September quarter from Rs.45.11 crore a year ago.