Mumbai, Sept 29: Led by Reliance Industries, the markets further consolidated gains on Wednesday with the BSE Sensex gaining 64 points close at 4797 points. According to marketmen, sentiment was strong after Star's Exit Poll put BJP-led alliance as firm favourites to from the next government. The Sensex hit the intra-day high at 4831 after opening with a gap at 4779 points. However, the net outstandings shot up to Rs 3075 crore on Tuesday, which is the highest in recent times. ``The market was range-bound after opening strong in the morning. But, the huge net outstandings is a worrying factor,'' said Hanu Bhatia at Parag Parikh Financial Services. Market sources point out that operators are beginningto build positions on expectations of a BJP-led government.``It was only because of a positive exit poll that the markets ended with a gain. Otherwise, it would have closed very weak,'' said a BSE broker. FIIs were net sellers yet again, offloading stocks worth Rs 78 crore on Tuesday. FIIs have net sold stocksworth Rs 325 crore since September 22.
Reliance gained close to 6 per cent on the BSE to end at Rs 241 after touching a high of Rs 242.90. While IT stocks continue to languish, there was fresh buying in pharma stocks. Brokers add that focus has now shifted to economy-related stocks with scrips like Apollo Tyres, Ashok Leyland, Arvind Mills and Crompton Greaves hitting the upper end of the circuit.
For once, the Infosys scrip did not take a cue from its ADR. The ADR, which had run up by $10 on the NASDAQ on Tuesday, failed to kindle a buying spree in the domestic counter. The scrip closed at Rs 7335, up Rs 230 from Tuesday's close.
Market participants point out that with a sharp spurt in net outstandings and high badla rates, there could be panic selling once election results are announced. ``Even after a BJP government is installed, we expect the market to rally by another 100 points after which players will offload in bulk. Even this week, badla rates are expected to hover around 35 per cent and willbe increasingly difficult to carry-forward positions,'' said a BSE broker. Market sources say FIIs are waiting for panic selling to come before they step in to buy at attractive valuations. ``Once net outstandings are come down to around Rs 2500 crore, FIIs are expected to commence buying,'' said a market source.
The markets are expected to rise for the rest of the week. ``Technically, the markets look strong and with fibonnaci turning positive, they should rise further,'' said Neel Dalal.
Polaris Software hits high of Rs 780 on BSE
The much talked-about Polaris Software made its BSE debut at Rs 550. During the day's trading, the scrip touched a high of Rs 780 and closed at Rs 761. During the day, the Polaris counter witnessed a whopping 11.54 lakh shares change hands. With a total turnover of Rs 78 crore, the Polaris scrip topped the BSE's B-group turnover table.
Earlier on Monday, Polaris had made its maiden stock market debut at Madras Stock Exchange at Rs 675 while its initial public offerprice was pegged at Rs 210. During the first half of August, the Polaris IPO, lead managed by Kotak Mahindra Capital, had managed to mobilise close to Rs 1900 crore against its initial issue size of Rs 92 crore.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.