Indian Stocks Rise, Led By State Bank; Oil India Gains on Debut
By Rajhkumar K Shaaw
Sept. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Indian stocks rose for the second day, driving the benchmark index to a 16-month high. Financial companies led gains after a government official said the economy will expand 7 percent in the current fiscal year.
State Bank of India Ltd., the nation’s biggest lender, added 3 percent after Arvind Virmani, chief economic adviser to the Ministry of Finance, yesterday said increased corporate tax revenue indicated India had begun to emerge from the global recession. Oil India Ltd., the second-biggest state-owned energy explorer, advanced 8.7 percent on its trading debut.
“The risk appetite of investors has increased, they are more confident now,” said Vaibhav Sanghavi, a director at Ambit Capital Ltd. in Mumbai, who manages funds for wealthy individuals. “The markets are in a bull run for a long period.”
The Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive Index, or Sensex, rose 229.75, or 1.4 percent, to 17,082.66 at 1:33 p.m. in Mumbai. The index is trading at its highest since May 21, 2008, and is set for its third quarterly gain, the longest winning streak since the three months ended Dec. 31, 2007.
The S&P CNX Nifty Index on the National Stock Exchange climbed 1.2 percent to 5,066.35. The BSE 200 Index gained 1.1 percent to 2,089.38.
State Bank rose 3 percent to 2,154.3 rupees.
Growth Forecasts
Virmani’s 7 percent growth forecast for the year ending March 31 is higher than the prediction of 6.3 percent by Montek Singh Ahluwalia, deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, a government agency that sets economic and investment targets, on Sept. 1. The economy expanded 6.7 percent in the preceding 12 months.
Taxes paid by Indian companies more than doubled in the three months through September, a finance ministry official said Sept. 22, declining to be identified. Companies make advance tax payments once every three months, based on their estimates of income for the quarter.
Sterlite gained 3 percent to 772.35 rupees. January- delivery copper rose as much as 2.4 percent copper on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, while three-month copper gained as much as 1.1 percent on the London Metal Exchange.
Oil India
Oil India gained 8.7 percent to 1,141.05 rupees. The state- run explorer, which raised 27.8 billion rupees ($578 million) in an initial public offering, started trading at 1,105 rupees. The company sold shares at 1,050 rupees.
Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., India’s biggest software services exporter, rose 1 percent to 616.25 rupees after it won a contract from Singapore’s People’s Association, according to a statement from the company.
Wockhardt Ltd., an Indian drugmaker, rose to its highest level in more than a year after saying it got preliminary U.S. approval to sell its drug for the treatment of prostate enlargement. The shares climbed 3.7 percent to 187.8 rupees after surging as much as 5.5 percent.
“They will get the advantage of being the first to market in the U.S.,” said Bhawana Verma, a Mumbai-based analyst at KR Choksey Shares & Securities Ltd., who recommends investors hold the shares. “This is a very good improvement for the company.”
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