Indian Shares End Lower As Weak Asia, Banks, Metals Weigh

MUMBAI (Dow Jones)--Indian shares ended lower Tuesday, dragged down by some banks and metal stocks as well as gloomy Asian markets.

The Bombay Stock Exchange's 30-share Sensitive Index lost 49.10 points, or 0.3%, to end at 17,131.08. It traded between 17,027.52 and 17,230.86 during the session.

Asian markets ended mostly lower, with the Shanghai Composite Index posting its biggest single-day fall in nearly three months as concerns Beijing will tighten its monetary policy led to heavy profit-taking.

"Nothing much is happening in the market. The Sensex could be without a definite direction for the next two days until the expiry of (monthly) derivative contracts (on Thursday)," said Arun Kejriwal, director of KRIS Pvt. Ltd.

On the National Stock Exchange, the 50-stock S&P CNX Nifty declined 13 points, or 0.3%, to 5,090.55.

Total traded volume on the BSE was INR47.61 billion, up from Monday's INR43.60 billion. Gainers outnumbered decliners 1,372 to 1,370, while 87 stocks were unchanged.

"The Sensex is trading in a very tight range and participation by investors is lacking," said Deven Choksey, managing director of K.R. Choksey Securities.

Banks fell on profit-taking by investors after a recent rally and on concerns over weak credit outlook.

The fundamental credit outlook for the Indian banking system remains negative, reflecting "rising level of problem loans and the resulting adverse implications for asset quality," Moody's Investor Service said Monday.

Private lender ICICI Bank fell 1.3% to INR905.30, while the State Bank of India slipped 0.7% to INR2,304.60.

Metals were weak, reflecting muted base metal prices on the London Metal Exchange.

Tata Steel, the world's eight-largest steelmaker by output, reversed Monday's 3.9% gain to close down 2.8% at INR557.40. Copper producer Sterlite Industries slid 1.9% to INR854.55.

Reliance Industries--which had jumped 3.3% Monday--finished 0.9% lower at INR2,176.10, while Oil & Natural Gas Corp. shed 1.1% to end at INR1,173.30.

Auto stocks were firm on short-covering by investors ahead of the expiry of monthly derivative contracts Thursday, dealers said.

Car maker Maruti Suzuki gained 2.7% to close at INR1,599.40 while sports utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra rose 2.4% to INR1,067.45.

Telecom companies rose on value-buying from investors following a recent decline. Bharti Airtel--India's largest cellphone operator by subscribers--climbed 2.3% to INR282.00, while rival Reliance Communications closed up 0.8% at INR173.45.

Among non-Sensex stocks, cable television distributor DEN Networks plunged 16.4% to INR163.10 on its first day of trading as market watchers felt the company's initial public offering was overpriced. The shares were sold at INR195 apiece.

Sourcewsj.com