High crude, weak global cues keep markets down

By Our Special Correspondent

Mumbai, May 7: The market tanked for the third successive day on Wednesday on weak global cues and high crude prices. Asian indices ended mostly in the red with the Hang Seng losing 651.92 points and Shanghai 154.36 points.

The Bharti share continued to be hammered by investors on rumours that it would be signing a no-compete agreement with African telecom company MTN. According to sources, all future expansions would have to be done through MTN.

The share lost Rs 30 and closed at Rs 815. It has lost nearly eight per cent in two days. The Sensex closed 34 points down at 17,339 while the Nifty closed nine points down at 5,135.

Refinery stocks, BPCL, HPCL and IOC were big losers as crude touched $121.84 per barrel but oil exploration companies were frisky with Cairn India gaining 7.5 per cent, RIL 1.5 per cent and Hoec 9.5 per cent. Analysts said that the loses of oil refining companies would go up to Rs 450 crore per day from Rs 340 crore per day in January. There is no likelihood of any pass through of the increased prices this year.

Riding on the back of a weakening rupee, IT stocks kept up the positive trend. Infosys was up Rs 22, TCS Rs 28 and Wipro marginally up at Rs 0.70. Satyam bucked the winning trend and was down Rs 7. There was a selling pressure on oil, PSU and banking stocks. The bank index was down 0.79 per cent, the PSU index down 1.65 per cent and the oil index 0.68 per cent.