Sensex rallied by 163 pts during week

Mumbai, Aug 30: The Sensex of Bombay Stock Exchange rallied by 163.04 points or 1.13 per cent at 14,564.53 on the week ended Friday from the previous weeks end, on good bull support by Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) following reports of lower inflation, brokers said.

The market started the week with marginal gains on reduced crude oil prices and reports of near-normal monsoon in the country. The market slumped later on expectations of higher weekly inflation figures. However, the market ended the week on a buoyant note as inflation fell for the first time in 28 weeks. Sensex gained in three out of five trading sessions, a leading brokers said.

Inflation based on the wholesale price index declined to 12.40 per cent in 12 months on August 16, from the previous week's 12.63 per cent due to fall in prices of some minerals and fuels, according to government data released on August 28.

The S &P CNX Nifty index of National Stock Exchange (NSE) also gained 32.55 points or 0.75 per cent at 4,360 in this week from the previous week.

The BSE 30-share Sensex was down by 5,722.46 points or 28.2 per cent in calendar year 2008 so far from its close of 20,286.99 on 31 December 2007. It is 6,642.24 points or 31.32 per cent away from its all-time high of 21,206.77 struck on January 10, 2008.

The BSE Mid-Cap index rose by 15.44 points or 0.27 per cent to 5,742.29 in the week. The BSE Small-Cap index slipped by 34.21 points or 0.49 per cent to 6,891.64 in the week.

The market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on August 28, altered the Disclosure and Investor Protection (DIP) guidelines to hasten the process of right issues. In another move, SEBI has disallowed FII sub-accounts falling in categories of ''foreign corporate'' and ''foreign individual'' in the definition of qualified institutional buyers (QIBs). These sub-accounts will not be allowed to invest in primary market through FIIs.

The NSE yesterday kickstarted trading in the exchange-traded rupee futures for the first time in India. Good volumes were reported on day one with the front-month contracts seeing brisk activity. The contract size is USD 1,000 each.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew at 7.9 per cent in the June 2008 quarter from a year earlier, easing from the previous quarter's 8.8 per cent as industrial activity slowed due to monetary tightening. The GDP growth in the first quarter of the current fiscal year was lower than market expectations of a rise of a little above 8 per cent. The government released the GDP data during trading hours yesterday.

FIIs sold shares worth Rs 1,211.70 crore in August 2008 (till 28 August 2008). FIIs sold shares worth Rs 28,513.60 crore in the calendar year 2008. Mutual funds sold shares worth Rs 700.40 crore in August 2008 (till 27 August 2008).

UNI