Friday, August 14, 2009

Market Outlook 14th Aug 2009

INTRADAY calls for 14th Aug 2009
Buy KALPATpower-786 for a target 811-815 stop loss 780

Buy HDIL-301 above 307 for a target 324 stop loss 300
Buy BGREnergy-373 for a target 385 stop loss 369
Buy MAHLife-325 for a target 347 stop loss 320

Yesterday's BTST
Buy LITL-433 for a target 442-445 stop loss 428
Buy ROLTA-159 for a target 165-167 stop loss 155
Buy TATAsteel-470 for a target 478-485 stop loss 464

Positional
Buy Jindalstel-3137 for a target 3400 stop loss 3080

 
Strong & Weak  futures, This is list of 10 strong futures: Jindal Saw, FSL, Patni, Tata Motors, HCL Tech, Bharat Forge, Bhushan Steel, Aurobindo Pharma, HDIL & Cummins India. And this is list of 10 Weak futures: Union Bank Of India, Chambal Fert, Divi'S Lab, Suzlon, Federal Bank, Colpal, IOB, Nagarjun Fertil, Dabur India & Hind Uni Lvr., Nifty is sideways 
 
NIFTY FUTURES (F & O):
 
Rally may continue up to 4634 level for time being.
Support at 4587 & 4601 levels. Below these levels, expect profit booking up to 4545-4547 zone and thereafter slide may continue up to 4505-4507 zone by non-stop.

Buy if touches 4384-4386 zone. Stop Loss at 4344-4346 zone.

On Positive Side, cross above 4674-4676 zone can take it up to 4714-4716 zone by non-stop. If crosses & sustains this zone then uptrend may continue.
 
Short-Term Investors:
 
Bullish Trend. 3 closes above 4473 level, it can zoom up to 4988 level by non-stop.
Stop Loss Triggered.
 
BSE SENSEX:
 
Higher opening expected. Uptrend should continue. 
Short-Term Investors:
 
Short-Term trend is Bearish and target at around 14235 level on down side.
Maintain a Stop Loss at 15973 level for your short positions too.
 
INVESTMENT BUY:
Buy HCL INFOSYSTEMS (NSE Cash) 
Uptrend to continue.
Mild sell-off up to 126 level can be used to buy. If uptrend continues, then it may continue up to 134 level for time being. 

If crosses & sustains at above 141 level then uptrend may continue.

Keep a Stop Loss at 119 level for your long positions too.
 
Buy SASKEN COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGI (NSE Cash) 
Uptrend to continue.

Mild sell-off up to 141 level can be used to buy. If uptrend continues, then it may continue up to 151 level for time being. 

If crosses & sustains at above 157 level then uptrend may continue.

Keep a Stop Loss at 135 level for your long positions too.
 
Global Cues & Rupee
 
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 9,398.19. Up by 36.58 points.
The Broader S&P 500 closed at 1,012.73. Up by 6.92 points.
The Nasdaq Composite Index closed at 2,009.35. Up by 10.63 points.
The partially convertible rupee INR=IN ended at 48.11/12 per dollar on yesterday, stronger than 48.37/38 at close on Wednesday.
 
 Interesting findings on web:
Stocks ended higher Thursday after a choppy session, as the Fed's economic outlook and a positive government debt auction overshadowed a report showing a surprise drop in retail sales.
Stocks eked out a gain after a late rally Thursday as investors cheered an encouraging business-inventories report, the latest sign that the recession is winding down.
It was a rocky session after the day's mixed bag of news: Wal-Mart beat earnings expectations but some of the other economic data was lousy.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 36.58 points, or 0.39%, to 9398.19, the Standard & Poor's 500 added 6.92 points, or 0.69%, to 1012.73 and the Nasdaq Composite picked up 10.63 points, or 0.53%, to 2009.35.
Thursday's trading got off to a rocky start amid a technical glitch on the New York Stock Exchange. The exchange said customers "are currently experiencing issues" with acknowledgments of order entries, causing a delay in orders and trades.
"It was incredibly frustrating as I was attempting to cancel an order and had no idea if the cancel went through or not and really did not want to have double the amount of shares," said one trader, Harry. "When I finally was able to get a confirmation, 30 minutes had gone by and the stock price had moved in a 70-cent range."
The NYSE ultimately canceled the orders that were pending from the outage, but it did little to restore traders' faith in the system.
"NYSE's attitude is they are responsible for nothing," Harry said, adding: "Probably a good stock to go short. I know I intend to try and have my orders go elsewhere." [NYX  29.12    -0.21  (-0.72%)   ]
Network issues caused some delays in orders and trades on the New York Stock Exchange just after the opening bell Thursday,
though the issue was resolved within the first half hour of trading. Slightly less than 2,000 securities were affected by the network problem, which affected four of the exchange's electronic matching engines for buy and sell orders.
Business inventories dropped 1.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted $1.35 trillion, helped by a 0.9-percent increase in sales.
The inventory-to-sales ratio fell to 1.38 from 1.41. But jobless claims rose unexpectedly by 4,000 to 558,000.
A couple of retailers beat earnings expectations, including retail titan Wal-Mart.
Wal-Mart [WMT  51.88    1.37  (+2.71%)   ] reported a flat profit, as the strong dollar hurt the value of international sales and stimulus checks last year made for tough year-over-year comparisons, but still topped expectations. Its shares rose 2.7 percent.
And department-store chain Kohl's narrowly beat estimates, helped by cheaply-priced and trendy merchandise. Shares rose 0.2 percent.
Overall, the retail sector finished mixed, with Macy's down 1.5 percent, after the government reported its measure of retail sales slipped 0.1 percent, after increasing an upwardly-revised 0.8 percent in June. Economists had expected a 0.7-percent increase for July, helped by the "Cash for Clunkers" program.
"Many families postponed the bulk of their back-to-school shopping this year, possibly waiting to take advantage of their state sales tax holiday or hoping for additional discounts," said Rosalind Wells, chief economist of the National Retail Federation. "Hopefully, retailers' aggressive promotions and reduced inventory levels will make for a better August and shield retailers from a disappointing season."
Home Depot shares [HD  27.68    0.48  (+1.76%)   ] rose 1.8 percent after Jefferies raised its price target on the stock to $32 from $29 and FBR raised its rating to "outperform" from "market perform."
Jefferies also raised its price target on Home Depot rival Lowe's [LOW  23.31    0.46  (+2.01%)   ], but FBR cut its rating on the stock to "market perform" from "outperform." Lowe's shares gained 2 percent.
High-end retailer Nordstrom will report earnings after the bell. Its shares climbed 1.1 percent ahead of the news.
Bank stocks led the board once again, with Bank of America [BAC  17.00    1.07  (+6.72%)   ] up 6.7 percent following news that hedge-fund titan John Paulson snapped up 168 million BAC shares.
Financial shares added to the gains. Citigroup (C, Fortune 500), and Wells Fargo (WFC, Fortune 500) all rose along with regional banks such as Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB, Fortune 500) and Regions Financial (RF, Fortune 500). The KBW Bank (BKX) index gained 3.1%.
The Dow was led higher Thursday by gains of about 6% each from Bank of America (BAC: 17, 1.09, 6.85%) and Alcoa (AA: 13.71, 0.75, 5.79%). Nearly half of the index's 30 components lost ground, including United Technologies (UTX: 57.43, -0.74, -1.27%) and Caterpillar (CAT: 47.15, -0.449, -0.94%).
Shares of retailers like Sears (SHLD: 78.37, 0.68, 0.88%) and Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF: 33.02, 0.91, 2.83%) ended flat to slightly higher.
The basic materials sector on Wall Street rose in response as metals and mining stocks like Freeport-McMoRan (FCX: 66.05, 3.14, 4.99%) and AK Steel Holding (AKS: 21.48, 0.88, 4.27%) rose sharply.
Las Vegas Sands (LVS: 13.86, 1.57, 12.77%) soared 12% after the casino operator said it completed an amendment to its $3.3 billion Macau credit facility. The amendment increases the company's interest rates but gives it flexibility to sell a minority stake in its Macau operations.
Urban Outfitters (URBN: 29.06, 0.84, 2.98%) reported a 14% decline in net income but the retailer's EPS of 29 cents a share topped estimates. The company's second-quarter sales rose by a better-than-expected 1% to $459 million even as its same-store sales tumbled 3%.
Estee Lauder (EL: 37.8, 0.12, 0.32%) reported a net loss in its latest quarter amid weak sales but the beauty products company's adjusted-profit of 20 cents per share matched the Street's view. Net sales tumbled by 16% to $1.68 billion, missing a $1.72 billion target.
DuPont (DD: 33.24, 0.77, 2.37%) unveiled plans to streamline its organization by consolidating its wide-ranging 23 businesses and eliminating five group vice president positions. The Dow component also named a new leadership team in the wake of the retirement of Richard Goodmanson, its chief operating officer.
Dr Pepper Snapple (DPS: 25.01, 1.46, 6.2%) easily beat the Street with a 46% jump in net income to 62 cents per share. The maker of Snapple and Mott's apple juice said its net sales tumbled 4% to $1.48 billion. Dr. Pepper also upgraded its 2009 profit outlook.
CIT Group [CIT  1.45    0.17  (+13.28%)   ] jumped 13 percent after the lender said it has adopted a tax-benefits-preservation plan, a move designed to preserve shareholder value, and signed an agreement to report regularly to the Fed.
E*Trade shares [ETFC  1.40    -0.06  (-4.11%)  ] skidded 4.1 percent after Citadel Investment Group, the hedge  fund that had injected capital into the struggling firm, said it would slash its investment in the company by more than two-thirds in the next few months.
In tech land, JPMorgan raised its price target for both Dell [DELL  14.29    0.45  (+3.25%)   ] and Hewlett Packard [HPQ  44.35    0.17  (+0.38%)   ]. Dell's target was raised to $13 from $10, while HP was lifted to $49.50 from $40.
Dell rose 3.3 percent, and HP shares gained 0.4 percent.
Among stocks to watch, LDK Solar swung to a second-quarter loss on a previously disclosed inventory write-down as sales slumped.
The company also projected third-quarter revenue below Wall Street expectations, sending its U.S. shares down more than 13.1%.
Similarly, Barclays Capital raised its price target for Apple [AAPL  168.45    3.14  (+1.9%)   ] to $208 from $188, citingsolid product pipeline such as the iPhone and prospects for strong free cash flow. Apple shares advanced 1.9 percent.
Here are Thursday's winners and losers
Winners:
Harris Corp. (HRS: 34.22, 3.73, 12.23%)
The IT company watched shares soar 12.1% on better-that-expected quarterly earnings. HRS shares closed at $34.19,a gain off $3.70.
Tellabs Inc. (TLAB: 6.85, 0.62, 9.95%)
An upgrade from Morgan Keegan pushed the communication company up 10%. TLAB shares last traded at $6.85, up 62 cents.
Massey Energy Co. (MEE: 30.5, 2.34, 8.31%)
The coal producer followed the sector's upward trend up 8.4%. MEE shares finished trading at $30.54, a gain of $2.36.
Regions Financial Corp. (RF: 5.2, 0.41, 8.56%)
News that hedge Paulson & Co. purchased 35 million shares of the bank skyrocketed the stock up 7.9% Thursday. RF shares closed at $5.20, a gain of 38 cents.
Tenet Healthcare Corp. (THC: 4.44, 0.31, 7.51%)
The health-care services company led the sector with a 7.5% gain. THC shares last traded at $4.43, up 31 cents.
Losers:
E*Trade Financial Corp. (ETFC: 1.4, 0.03, 2.19%)
The stock plummeted 4.1% on the news that Citadel Investment Group sold its shares in the online-investing company. ETFC shares last traded at $1.40, down 6 cents.
Constellation Energy Group Inc. (CEG: 29.0301, -1.2299, -4.06%)
The utility provider recovered from session lows but still traded down 4.1%. CEG shares closed at $29.03, a loss of $1.23.
CBS Corp. (CBS: 10.29, -0.4, -3.74%)
A Caris downgrade dropped the broadcasting company 4%. CBS shares ended the session at $10.29, down 43 cents.
D.R. Horton Inc. (DHI: 12.95, -0.51, -3.79%)
A Citi downgrade cost the homebuilder 3.7%. DHI shares finished Thursday at $12.95, a loss of 50 cents.
Washington Post Co. (WPO: 475.59, -16.43, -3.34%)
The publisher fell 3.4% to end the session. WPO shares last traded at $475.60, a loss of $16.76.
Europe's two biggest economies, France and Germany, posted surprise returns to growth in the second quarter, boosting investor optimism further.
Today's $15 billion auction of 30-year bonds was met with strong demand, suggesting investors aren't totally convinced of the recovery's trajectory. The auction fetched a high yield of 4.541 percent, slightly higher than expected,  but the bid-to-cover ratio was 2.54, reflecting higher-than-usual demand.
This came after a mediocre sale of 10-year notes on Wednesday.
Offering some encouragement for the global economy, German and French gross domestic product each rose by 0.3 percent in the second quarter, bringing the countries out of recession. Economists had expected a 0.3-percent contraction in both countries.
Economy:
Indications that the global economy could be stabilizing provided investors with some ptimism, but that was countered by Thursday's weak readings on consumers.On Thursday, both France and Germany posted GDP growth in the second quarter, surprising economists.
In the United States, the Federal Reserve provided a little optimism Wednesday, saying that although economic activity is likely to remain weak, the decline is leveling out and financial market conditions appear to have improved. This seemed to echo recent reports showing the economy is stabilizing.
"We're starting to see an improvement and we could see a quarter or so of higher growth on recovering inventories," said Stephen Mahoney, fixed income portfolio manager at Glenmede Investment Management.
"But the question is where do we go from here?," he said. "We need to see a few quarters of strong growth, not just one quarter."
Future growth could be constrained by consumers, who continue to beef up their savings and avoid spending on non-essentials, as Thursday's retail sales and jobless claims reports made clear.
The Commerce Department reported Thursday that business inventories declined for the 10th straight month.
Friday brings reports on consumer sentiment, industrial production and capacity utilization -- and consumer prices.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for July is expected to come in unchanged, as inflationary pressure remains benign. CPI rose 0.7% in June. The so-called Core CPI, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, is expected to have risen 0.1% after rising 0.2% in June. The Labor Department releases the report.
The Commerce Department said U.S. retail sales unexpectedly fell 0.1% in July.
The drop in July retail sales - which came despite the debut of the government's "cash for clunkers" program meant to jump-start the auto business and help turn around the economy - was a huge disappointment on Wall Street. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires forecast a 0.8% increase in July retail sales.
The gains in stock futures came amid a surprise rise in German and French output in the second quarter, stronger-than-expected Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) earnings and Wednesday's more upbeat assessment from the Federal Reserve. On Wednesday, U.S. stocks climbed after the Fed left interest rates unchanged, said it slow the purchase of long-term Treasurys and said economic activity is leveling out. 

Retail sales slip:
According to Thursday's retail sales report, demand for goods aside from cars took a large tumble last month, with big declines for housing-related retailers and electronic stores. Excluding autos, all other retail sales dropped 0.6%; economists expected a 0.1% gain.
Vouchers for the car rebate program weren't available until the last part of July; perhaps the program will have a more positive effect on overall retail sales for August.
Retail sales fell 0.1% in July, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. The results were a surprise to economists who were looking for a rise of 0.7%, on average, according to a Briefing.com survey. Sales rose 0.8% in June.
Results would have been worse if not for the government's Cash for Clunkers program, which boosted auto sales. Retail sales excluding autos fell 0.6% in July versus forecasts for a rise of 0.1%. Sales without autos rose a revised 0.5% in June.
The report is worrisome, as consumer spending fuels two-thirds of gross domestic product growth. So far, low prices and government stimulus have helped the economy stabilize, but without a pickup in spending, any recovery will be moderate at best.
In related news, Ford Motor (F, Fortune 500) said it is boosting production for the rest of the year to meet increased demand as a result of Cash for Clunkers.
Wal-Mart Stores:
The No. 1 retailer reported quarterly earnings Thursday.
On the upside, Wal-Mart earned 88 cents per share versus 87 cents a year ago and more than what analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected. Wal-Mart also said that it expects current-quarter earnings in line with analysts' forecasts.
But revenue fell more than expected and the company said customers were cutting back. The Dow component also said that sales at stores open a year or more, also known as same-store sales, fell 1.2% in the quarter.
Nonetheless, investors focused on the positive and shares gained 2.7% Thursday.
Labor market:
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment rose to 558,000 last week, surprising economists who were expecting jobless claims to drop to 545,000 claims.
However, the Labor Department report also showed that continuing claims, which measures people who have been receiving benefits for a week or more, fell to 6,202,000 from 6,343,000 in the previous week.
The Labor Department said the number of U.S. workers filing new claims for state jobless benefits rose slightly last week, but the small increase is not likely to be viewed as a major setback amid other signs of improved labor market conditions.
Initial claims for jobless benefits rose by 4,000 to 558,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis in the week ending Aug. 8, according to the weekly report. The four-week average of new claims, which aims to smooth volatility in the data, rose by 8,500 to 565,000 - the highest since July 18.
The tally of continuing claims - those drawn by workers for more than one week - fell by 141,000 during the week ended August 1 to 6,202,000 - the lowest level since April 11. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had predicted a decrease in initial claims of 5,000.
Housing:
The housing market remains constrained, according to a new report released Thursday.
Foreclosure filings jumped almost 7% in July from the previous month, according to RealtyTrac. Filings rose 32% from a year ago.
Bonds:
Treasury prices gained, lowering the yield on the benchmark 10-year note to 3.59% from 3.71% Wednesday.
Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
The government is auctioning $75 billion in debt this week as part of its efforts to reduce the deficit and fuel its recovery efforts.
On Thursday, Treasury auctioned $15 billion in 30-year bonds to strong demand.
The first two auctions had mixed results. Tuesday's sale of $37 billion in three-year notes saw stronger demand than other recent auctions. Wednesday's auction of $23 billion in 10-year notes showed demand roughly in line with recent levels.
Oil, Gold & Currencies:
U.S. light crude oil for September delivery rose 36 cents to settle at $70.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
COMEX gold for December delivery rose $4 to settle at $956.50 an ounce.
In currency trading, the dollar fell versus the euro and the Japanese yen.
What to expect:
FRIDAY: CPI; industrial production; consumer sentiment; Earnings from JCPenney.
Friday's data includes the Consumer Price Index at 8:30 a.m. and industrial production at 9:15 a.m. Consumer sentiment is at 9:55 a.m. J.C. Penney [JCP  33.34    0.13  (+0.39%)   ] and Abercrombie and Fitch [ANF  32.96    0.88  (+2.74%)   ] report earnings ahead of the opening bell.
Brown Brothers Harriman currency strategist Win Thin said the dollar's action Wednesday and Thursday shows the idea circulating after Friday's jobs report that the dollar could be making a turn has not panned out. "On Friday, everybody got bullish on Fed tightening and now that's worn off. Cooler heads have prevailed," he said.
Among the stocks expected to see active trading Friday are Abercrombie & Fitch Co., American Dairy Inc., China Direct Industry Inc. and J.C. Penney Co.
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. /quotes/comstock/13*!anf/quotes/nls/anf (ANF 33.00, +0.04, +0.12%) is expected to post a second-quarter loss of 7 cents a share, according to analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.
American Dairy Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!ady/quotes/nls/ady (ADY 31.84, -0.14, -0.44%) is forecast to post second-quarter earnings of 7 cents a share.
Brasil Foods /quotes/comstock/13*!pda/quotes/nls/pda (PDA 46.24, -0.03, -0.07%) is expected to post second-quarter earnings of 39 cents a share.
China Direct Industry Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!cdii/quotes/nls/cdii (CDII 1.83, -0.02, -1.09%) is forecast to post a second-quarter loss of 5 cents a share.
Hydrogenics Corp. /quotes/comstock/15*!hygs/quotes/nls/hygs (HYGS 0.52, -0.02, -3.88%) is projected to post a second-quarter loss of 3 cents a share.
J.C. Penny Co. /quotes/comstock/13*!jcp/quotes/nls/jcp (JCP 33.56, +0.22, +0.66%) is expected to post a second-quarter loss of 1 cent a share.
Knightsbridge Tankers Ltd. /quotes/comstock/15*!vlccf/quotes/nls/vlccf (VLCCF 15.73, +0.25, +1.61%) is projected to post second-quarter earnings of 29 cents a share.
Nexxus Lighting Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!nexs/quotes/nls/nexs (NEXS 6.60, +0.10, +1.54%) is forecast to post a second-quarter loss of 13 cents a share.
VanceInfo Technologies Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!vit/quotes/nls/vit (VIT 15.15, -0.08, -0.53%) is expected to post second-quarter earnings of 11 cents a share.
After Thursday's bell, Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!tktm/quotes/nls/tktm (TKTM 9.77, -0.10, -1.01%) said its second-quarter profit fell to $6.9 million, or 12 cents a share, from $23 million, or 41 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue fell to $355.1 million from $382.4 million last year.
Irving Azoff, chief executive officer, said the economic downturn has challenged Ticketmaster's attempts to create new ticketing products.
Watch List
Apple Inc.'s /quotes/comstock/15*!aapl/quotes/nls/aapl (AAPL 168.45, +0.03, +0.02%) board is set to meet Tuesday to discuss possible replacements for Google Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!goog/quotes/nls/goog (GOOG 462.00, -0.28, -0.06%) Chief Executive Eric Schmidt, The Wall Street Journal reported late Thursday on its Web site, citing an unidentified person familiar with the matter. Schmidt stepped down from Apple's board in late July.
Autodesk Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!adsk/quotes/nls/adsk (ADSK 24.28, +0.08, +0.33%) on Thursday reported a second-quarter profit of $10.5 million, or 5 cents a share, compared with a profit of $89.8 million, or 39 cents a share, for the year-earlier period. Revenue was $414.9 million, down from $619.5 million for the same quarter last year.
Blockbuster Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!bbi/quotes/nls/bbi (BBI 0.72, -0.14, -16.28%) said late Thursday that its second-quarter loss narrowed to $39.7 million, or 21 cents a share, from $44.7 million, or 23 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding one-time items, the video chain would have reported a loss of 19 cents a share for the latest period. Revenue fell to $1.02 billion from $1.3 billion last year.
Nordstrom Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!jwn/quotes/nls/jwn (JWN 29.52, -0.24, -0.81%) reported late Thursday second-quarter net income fell to $105 million, or 48 cents a share, from $143 million, or 65 cents, a year ago. Net sales for the three months ended Aug. 1 fell 6% to $2.14 billion as shoppers hit by the recession tightened their purse strings. Same-store sales for the quarter fell 9.8% from a year ago.
Asia:
Asian stocks rose, driving the MSCI Asia Pacific Index to its highest level in more than 10 months, as higher metal prices and anticipation of more takeovers fueled speculation a five-month rally will continue.
Major markets across Asia started the Friday mostly higher, aided by the higher close on Wall Street, but volume is expected to be light due to August vacations.
Japan's Nikkei [JP;N225  10627.63    110.4395  (+1.05%)   ] average rose 0.3 percent on Friday, lifted by exporters such as Kyocera after better-than-expected earnings by Wal-Mart Stores [WMT  51.88    1.37  (+2.71%)   ] helped offset disappointing U.S. data on retail sales and jobs.
The benchmark Nikkei nudged back close to a 10-month high of 10,587.36 hit on Tuesday. The broader Topix was slightly higher.
Sumitomo Realty & Development Co. (8830) shares rose for the seventh straight trading day Friday morning, climbing 85 yen from Thursday at one point to hit a year-to-date high of 2,165 yen.
Shares in Benesse Corp. (9783) traded higher for the fifth straight day Friday morning, rising as much as 80 yen to hit 4,320 yen.
But volume is expected to be low, with many people in Japan taking the day off at the heart of the August holiday period. 
Australian stocks also rose with banks and miners leading the gains amid optimism over economic growth.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index [AU;XJO  4466.7    30.80  (+0.69%)   ] was up, adding to a 2.1 percent rise on Thursday. 
Korea's Kospi [KR;KSPI  1589.69    25.0499  (+1.6%)   ] also gained, with news that North Korea on Thursday released a South Korean worker it had held since late March helping sentiment.
In addition, Singapore's Straits Times index [GB;STI  2621.56    7.38  (+0.28%)   ] opened in the green.
HSI 20728.95 -132.35 -0.63%. (08.49 AM IST)
Chinese stocks open almost flat on Fri
Chinese stocks opened almost flat on Friday morning.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A shares and B shares on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, opened at 3,138.15 points, down 0.08% or 2.41 points from the previous closing.
The Shenzhen Component Index on the smaller Shenzhen Stock Exchange opened 0.04% or 4.53 points higher at 12,807.44 points.

Ford increases third-quarter production under cash for clunkers program
U.S. automaker Ford Motor Co. announced Thursday that it is boosting third-quarter production in North America by another 10,000 units to meet increased demand for its vehicles.    
China sees stamp duty revenue surge 152.35% in Jul
China's stamp duty revenue on stock trading soared 152.35% year on year to RMB 7.09 billion in July, due to the booming stock market, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Finance yesterday.
Last month, stock trading volume on the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses soared 53.5% from June to RMB 7.09 trillion, according to statistics released by the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
In the first seven months of this year, China's stamp duty revenue totaled RMB 29.28 billion, accounting for 0.83% of the country's total tax revenue in the period, which stood at RMB 3.55 trillion.
The surge in stock transaction triggered concern that China may raise the stamp tax on stock trading.
However, analysts have said that the Chinese government are unlikely to raise the tax, since doing so would not be good for a steady stock market.

China bans expansion in iron and steel industry for three years
China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is currently drafting a guide to mergers and acquisitions in the iron and steel industry, and to curb overcapacity will disallow expansion projects in the steel industry for the next three years.
Annual production capacity is currently 660 million tons, while demand is only 470 million tons, indicating a surplus of 190 million tons, said Li Yizhong, minister of MIIT. Furthermore, projects that will add 58 million tons of capacity are under construction.
Li believes that one of the solutions is to eliminate outdated facilities. Doing so would cut annual production of iron by 100 million tons and annual production of steel by 50 million tons.
China's iron and steel industry should accelerate mergers and acquisitions, Li said. Steel mills in Hebei Province will cut their annual overall capacity to 80 million tons from 120 million tons over the next two to three years.
Li also said that the sharply increasing prices of iron ore lead to big losses of Chinese steel enterprises, and China hope the world's major iron ore suppliers will consider long-term cooperation with China's steel industry and handle the price negotiation fairly.
China Mobile to have 80 mln 3G users in 2 years
China Mobile Communications Corp, the parent of China Mobile Ltd<0941><CHL>, aims to attract 80 million TD-SCDMA users in the first two years after launching 3G services, said Li Yizhong, minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, on Thursday, sources reported.
China Mobile is the country's largest telecom operator by user base. The company was authorized to offer 3G services based on the home-grown TD-SCDMA standard. The company aims to expand its 3G services to 238 cities from the current 38 cities by the end of this year.
China Telecom Corp Ltd<0728><CHA>, the nation's largest fixed-line operator, runs 3G services based the U.S.-developed CDMA2000 standard in 342 cities across the country, while China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd<600050><0762><CHU>, the country's second largest telecom operator, has launched 3G services based on Europe's WCDMA standard in 100 cities.
Li said he has confidence in the development of the home-grown TD standard despite the fact that the technology is not as mature as other standards.
At the end of June, China Mobile had 959,000 G3 subscribers who used its 3G services.

China Telecom finishes 1st phase 3G network construction
China Telecom<0728><CHA>, the nation's largest fixed-line operator, has finished the first phase construction on its 3G network across the country, almost six months ahead of the original schedule, sources reported.
China Telecom's 3G network will cover all county-level or above cities.
The Shanghai branch of China Telecom hopes to attract a base of 5.5 million mobile users, more than double the current number of 2.13 million, said Shanghai Telecom's General Manager Zhang Weihua.
Wang Yongzhen, the telco's marketing director, said that the firm's 3G network currently covers 2,055 counties or county-level cities over the country, as well as more than 6,000 villages in the eastern coastal region.
China Telecom obtained the 3G license from the country's telecom industry regulator in January this year, along with the other two major Chinese carriers China Mobile<0941><CHL> and China Unicom<600050><0762><CHU>.
China Telecom's CDMA 2000 network, which is 20 times faster than the 2G network, is also the fastest among the three 3G networks in China, sources said.
H shares of China Telecom rose 1.74% to close at HK$4.10 on Thursday.    
 
INVESTMENT VIEW
GOI drought linked freebies
 
 
 
GOI drought linked freebies this weekend could raise consolidated fisc deficit to 15 % for FY10, and will most likely be accompanied by a rise in drought linked taxes, surcharges and borrowings-not good news for an impoverished nation with an over-valued stock market.
 
Analysts watch with some trepidation political moves that the Government in India may announce at this weekend's Independence Day celebrations. The country where atleast 50 per cent of the land mass has received less than previously forecast below normal monsoon rains has all but declared a drought-the first in 13 years.
 
This has led to a shoot up in food prices (CPI already running at 12 per cent) and expected to go up even higher. In the past such geographic upheavals have meant more debt write-offs and freebies to an already pampered category of farmers that pays no income tax, gets free water and power and a Government that is ready to buy whatever is produced at above market prices year on year.
 
The GOI which is expected to declare a consolidated Fiscal Deficit of 10 per cent for FY10 is likely to over-shoot this target with the expected weekend announcement. Some analysts expect the deficit could now go to as high as 15 per cent in FY10, an unsustainable level which should be accompanied by higher corporate taxes and surcharges on personal taxation of the rich.

(Some forward looking statements on projections, estimates, expectations & outlook are included to enable a better comprehension of the Company prospects. Actual results may, however, differ materially from those stated on account of factors such as changes in government regulations, tax regimes, economic developments within India and the countries within which the Company conducts its business, exchange rate and interest rate movements, impact of competing products and their pricing, product demand and supply constraints.)
 
 
FII DATA
FII trading activity on NSE and BSE in Capital Market Segment(In Rs. Crores)
Category Date Buy Value Sell Value Net Value
FII 13-Aug-2009 2698.97 2068.03 630.94
 

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Arvind Parekh
+ 91 98432 32381