Alkali Metals shares ends at 68% premium

Shares of new listing Alkali Metals Ltd closed at Rs 173.40 on NSE Thursday, a premium of Rs 70.40 or 68.35 per cent against the issue price of Rs 103.

The intraday high was Rs 179 and low Rs 99 on volume of 1,06,70,652 shares.

On BSE, Alkali Metals shares ended at Rs 173.15, a premium of Rs 70.15 or 68.11 per cent. The stock touched a high of Rs 179.30 and low was Rs 90.

Source: EconomicTimes

FIIs offload equities worth Rs 511 cr

Foreign Institutional Investors sold off equities worth Rs 511.53 crore, amid the Bombay Stock Exchange barometer index Sensex losing 386 poi
nts today.

FIIs invested in shares worth Rs 1,479.54 crore and shed stocks valued at Rs 1,991.07 crore, resulting in net sales of Rs 511.53 crore, as per provisional data available on the BSE.

According to information available on Sebi website, FIIs invested in equities worth Rs 339.50 crore yesterday.
Reversing their selling spree, domestic institutional investors today invested in shares worth Rs 351.57 crore on the bourses.

Meanwhile, brokers purchased Rs 22.14 crore on behalf of their clients and retail investors on the day's trade.
Besides, non-resident Indian entities and proprietors invested in stocks valued Rs 1.53 crore and 0.06 crore respectively. The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark index Sensex fell by 385.79 points, or 3.81 per cent, at 9,734.22 points.

Source: EconomicTimes

European shares down after huge British rate cut

European shares traded lower at midday on Thursday, having pared losses after a surprisingly large Bank of England rate cut, and investors sw
itched their sights to a European Central Bank rate decision due at 1245 GMT.

By 1219 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 1.7 percent at 937.03 points, off a earlier low of 911.3 points.

The Bank of England slashed rates by 1.5 percentage points to 3 percent. Most economists polled by Reuters had forecast a half-point BoE cut although several had changed their forecasts following a series of gloomy data.

Analysts said the move suggested that the European Central Bank would cut by more than the 0.5 percentage points most expected before the BoE move.

"The amazing decision by the BoE to slash rates by 150 basis points leads us to believe that the ECB will be cutting by 100 basis points today. That is now our expectation," Royal Bank of Scotland said in a note.

Britain's central bank has never cut interest rates by more than half a point since it was made independent in 1997. The last time rates were slashed by a percentage point was in 1993, when the country was struggling to emerge from a recession.

"It looks like the Bank of England monetary policy committee has completed abandoned its policy of incremental changes. This is good decisive action. This decision is unprecedented and the market is going to be confused for a time by it," said Jim Wood-Smith, head of research at Williams de Broe.

"On the one hand it is good news; on the other hand it is confirmation that we are up a gum tree."

Banks were the biggest losers on the index. HSBC, BNP Paribas, UBS and Banco Santander were down 2.8-8.2 percent.

Elsewhere in financials, the world's biggest listed hedge fund firm Man Group lost 29.7 percent after it said its pre-tax profit fell 24 percent to $622 million in the six months to end-September.

"Financials are under pressure especially in this environment. But, would have thought a hedge fund company like Man Group would have done well in these type of circumstances. The group has not lived up to the expectations everyone had for them and now there is a question of huge redemptions," said Mike Lenhoff, strategist at Brewin Dolphin.

AXA, Europe's biggest insurer by market capitalisation, dropped 4.9 percent after it reported lower 9-month sales.

Across Europe, the FTSE 100 index was down 2.7 percent, Germany's DAX was 2.75 percent and France's CAC 40 was 2.55 percent lower.

Energy stocks also contributed to heavy losses on the index as crude fell 2.45 percent as the dollar strengthened and dismal economic data pointed to a deeper U.S recession than feared.

BG Group, BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Total were down 2.5-3.3 percent. A retreat in metal prices also weighed on mining shares with with copper down 3.2 percent. Vedanta Resources slipped 9.5 percent after the group posted a 24.7 percent drop in first half profit.

Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton and Xstrata were between 6.3-8.4 percent lower. On the upside, brewer InBev gained 0.07 percent as it insisted its $52 billion takeover of Anheuser-Busch was on track after third-quarter results slightly exceeded expectations despite rocketing costs.

Investors also turned to defensive stocks considered a safe bet in times of economic turmoil, with the pharmaceutical sector regaining some of the ground which it lost on Wednesday. Roche and Novartis were up between 0.8-0.95 percent.

Source: EconomicTimes

US stocks opens lower as economic woes mount

Wall Street remains worried about the U.S. economy. Stocks are moderately lower as fresh readings on retail sales and jobless claims fan in
vestors' recession fears.

Retailers are releasing October sales figures that indicate consumers are pulling back their spending sharply. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. reported a better-than-expected rise in October sales but investors are worried about specialty retailers.

A Labor Department report Thursday shows new claims for unemployment benefits dipped by 4,000 to a seasonally adjusted level of 481,000, but that they remain above the 400,000 level that suggests recession.

The Dow Jones industrial average is down 22 at the 9,117 level.

Source: EconomicTimes

India doing better than other economies: JP Morgan

Indian economy will not be affected as badly as other countries by the global financial crisis as it has a strong growth record, Jamie Di2008: Year of global financial crisis
mon, chief executive of financial services firm JP Mrgan Chase and Co, said.

"India is doing far better than most other countries... Most important that you (India) might slow down a little bit but you have still a pretty good growth, so I don't think it needs to do quiet anything like it has been done elsewhere," Dimon said in an interview with a news channel.

He, however, said that the global economic scenario was alarming and the current crisis was "worst since the great depression" of 1930s.

Referring to the great depression, he said: "I don't think it will go that bad but that will be the worst."

With the three major economies - the US, Europe and Japan - facing downturn, Dimon urged the emerging economies to be prepared to deal with its consequences.

"The three 3 major economies in the world are slowing down... that it will have an effect on them (emerging economies)," he said.

Source: EconomicTimes

SBI reduces prime lending rate by 0.75 pc

Country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) has lowered its Prime Lending Rate (PLR) by 0.75 per cent, its Chairman O P Bhatt told rep
orters here on Thursday.

Several PSU lenders, including Canara Bank, Bank of India and Bank of Baroda, Syndicate Bank, have already slashed their benchmark prime lending rates by 0.75 per cent after Finance Minister P Chidambaram met state-owned banks' heads to discuss the possibility of rate cuts.

Source: EconomicTimes

Buffett, Soros continue to buy stake in companies

In the midst of people selling their stocks as market values touch the nadir, legendary investors-- Warren Buffett and George Soros-- seemModern Moguls
to be swimming against the tide and shopping for stakes in companies worldwide.

With the economic crisis ravaging global markets, the two billionaires are making investments in firms from America to Australia, which are expected to yield long term benefits.

As Buffett wrote recently in a newspaper column, a simple rule dictates his buying, "Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful."

Recently, Buffett pumped in about eight billion dollars in two American corporates. The legendary investor had pumped in five billion dollars to battered Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs and another three billion dollars into diversified conglomerate General Electric.

According to reports, Soros snapped up a five per cent stake in Australian firm Sphere Investments. The company is reportedly looking to develop a multi-billion dollar iron ore mine in Mauritania.

Moreover, in October, Soros had acquired over five per cent in Australian mining firm Legend International. The deal is pegged to be worth more than eight million dollars.

Buffett has bought preferred shares worth five billion dollars from Goldman Sachs, which would infuse the much needed capital into the firm.

In addition, Buffett has acquired preferred stocks worth three billion dollars in GE.

Amid the financial turmoil, the investor is not only just acquiring stakes, Buffett has even said that he is buying US stocks.

Last month, writing in the New York Times, Buffett asserted that he has been buying US stocks.

"The financial world is a mess, both in the United States and abroad. Its problems, moreover, have been leaking into the general economy, and the leaks are now turning into a gusher. In the near term, unemployment will rise, business activity will falter and headlines will continue to be scary.

So ... I've been buying American stocks. This is my personal account I'm talking about, in which I previously owned nothing but United States government bonds," he wrote in his column.

Further, the legendary investor pointed out that if prices remain attractive, his non-Berkshire net worth would soon be 100 per cent in United States equities.

Source: EconomicTimes