Operators chary as Budget looms

BS Research Bureau

Operators seem to have turned cautious a month ahead of the Union Budget for 2002-03. Volumes on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange bear a testimony to this.

The combined turnover on these exchanges declined by 20 per cent over the previous week with the BSE registering a fall of 21.24 per cent and the NSE showing a drop of 19.51 per cent.

Owing to this lack of support from operators, losers outnumbered gainers 1.1:1. In absolute terms, 494 stocks gained while 527 declined during the week.

The BSE Sensex moved down by 1.33 per cent to close at 3332.30, while the S&P CNX Nifty fell by 1.20 per cent at 1030.73 in the period.

The second rung stocks topped the gainers list with Sanwaria Agro Products rocketing by 100 per cent to close the week at Rs 24.15.

Aggregate volumes rose from 1,700 shares last week to 20,650 shares during the week ended January 25.

Maharashtra Scooters gained 64.2 per cent with volume jumping over 10 times at 570,000 shares. Dredging Corporation continued to be in gainers list with weekly gain of 28.43 per cent with volume jumping by five fold to 34,500 shares.

MphasiS BFL held forte for IT companies by posting a 28 per cent rise on the back of an encouraging quarterly performance.

The share volume rose from 868,000 shares to 1.685 million shares. Arvind Mills, which had dipped to an all-time low of Rs 4, was back in the limelight this week, winding up above Rs 10 at Rs 11.05, a rise of 25 per cent over the last Friday close.

The deal struck by United Breweries with British brewer Scottish & Newcastle disappointed operators who unloaded their holdings.

The aggregate volume on the counter rose from 1.261 million shares to Rs 2.953 million shares. Tata Steel (down 13.3 per cent), HCL Technologies (down 11.8 per cent), Himachal Futuristic (down 9 per cent) and Zee Telefilms (down 7.44 per cent) were among big losers in A group securities.

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