Markets close almost unchanged

Mumbai, Aug 14: The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex today settled virtually unchanged at 15,000.91 from its previous close of 15,017.21, registering a nominal loss of just 16.30 points, as investors remained undecided a day ahead of the final outcome from hedge funds becomes clear.

''Global markets are watching with concern for cues from hedge funds, which have been hit due to their exposure to subprime mortgage-backed loans. Sub-prime loans imply the credit extended to less-credit-worthy individuals. Tomorrow is the last day of the 45-day notice period required for investors to withdraw money from many hedge funds across the world for the current July-September 2007 quarter,'' market analysts explained.

Consequently, a similar trend was also observed among the broader markets, as the National Stock Exchange (NSE) S&P CNX Nifty also slipped by a marginal 3.45 points to settle at 4,370.20 from its previous close of 4,373.65.

''The market ended almost unchanged after seeing range-bound movement throughtout the day. US stocks had also closed without much movement during the last trading session. Besides, Asian and European indices were trading on a mixed note today. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have been on a selling spree lately,'' market pundits observed.

BSE data showed that the benchmark index oscillated in a narrow range of 105 points for the day. The market breadth was strong as 1,580 shares advanced as compared to 1,113 that declined, while 88 remained unchanged. Among the 30-scrip Sensex pack, 16 declined while the rest gained.

The top gainer from the Sensex pack was NTPC, the country's largest power generation firm, that rose 3.10 per cent to Rs 173 on high volumes of 18.76 lakh shares. Late last week, NSE decided to add NPTC in S&P CNX Nifty index in place of Dabur India from Sept 24. The other winners included SBI, HDFC Bank, ONGC, Hindalco Industries and Reliance Industries (RIL), while ACC, Hindustan Unilever, HDFC and Grasim ended in the red.

Asian indices were mixed today. Nikkei 225 rose 0.27 per cent, Shanghai Composite climbed 1.09 per cent, Singapore's Straits Times was up 0.18 per cent and Hang Seng edged higher 0.53 per cent, while South Korea's Seoul Composite tanked 1.70 per cent and Taiwan Weighted slipped 0.31 per cent.

US shares closed marginally lower yesterday as the Dow Jones industrial average slipped 3.01 points, or 0.02 per cent, to 13,236.53. The Standard&Poor's 500 index dropped 0.72 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 1,452.92 and the Nasdaq Composite index retreated 2.65 points, or 0.10 per cent, to 2,542.24.

SBI, the country's largest bank, moved up 0.10 per cent to Rs 1,614.70 on its plans to mop up nearly Rs 1,80,000 crore over the next five years, including a Rs 14,500 crore public offer this fiscal.

India's largest private sector company and oil refiner Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 0.45 per cent to Rs 1,837.10 on 4.47 lakh shares. RIL has received clearance from West Bengal's Food Processing and Horticulture department for its agri-retail business in the state.

ACC, the country's second largest cement producer, slipped 2.40 per cent to Rs 988 on 2.01 lakh shares. It was the top loser from the Sensex pack.

Fast moving comsumer goods (FMCG) giant Hindustan Unilever declined 1.55 per cent to Rs 200.40 on profit booking after rallying 4 per cent to Rs 203.50 yesterday. According to AC Nielsen's retail panel, HUL's market share in the instant coffee market rose from 40.7 per cent in March to 47.4 per cent in June quarter. In fabric wash too, HUL's share in the June quarter went up to 37.8 per cent from 36.4 per cent in the preceding quarter. Also, HUL's share in shampoos increased from 46.9 per cent to 47.5 per cent during the same period.

Omnitech InfoSolutions was trading at Rs 164.55 on BSE, a premium of 56.71 per cent over the initial public offer (IPO) price of Rs 105. It debuted at Rs 183.75 and hit a low and high of Rs 155 and 183.75, respectively. About 89.92 lakh shares were traded on the counter. The company had fixed the issue price at the top end of the Rs 90-Rs 105 price band. Omnitech InfoSolutions IPO ended on July 25 with 61.84 times subscription.

US crude oil was little changed today, after managing a slight gain a day ago, supported by central bank cash injections into the global financial system and storms brewing in the Atlantic basin. US crude oil futures slipped 7 cents to USD 71.55 a barrel. London's Brent crude fell 8 cents to USD 70.15 a barrel.

UNI