Auto makers were lower today. Tata Motors declined 2.5% to Rs 725. During trading hours on May 18 2007, Tata Motors posted a 25.57% increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 2,169.99 crore in the fiscal 2007 compared with Rs 1,728.09 crore in the fiscal 2006. Bajaj Auto slid 1.7% to Rs 2,248 and Hero Honda was off nearly 1% at Rs 680.

Bajaj Auto shares plunged 16% in the past two sessions after the surprise revelation that Allianz — Bajaj partnership in its two insurance ventures has a call option to buy up to 74% at a nominal price. This was the greatest disappointment in the demerger plan Bajaj is considering.

IT stocks declined on a strong rupee. Wipro and Satyam shed 1.7% each to Rs 535 and Rs 448, respectively. TCS and Infosys lost over 1% each to Rs 1,237 and Rs 1,961, respectively.


6:30AM European stocks are mixed Monday with M&A at the center of attention.

European markets were mixed Monday. In Germany the Xetra Dax added 15.6 points or 0.2% to 7,623.06 but in Paris, the French CAC 40 fell 16.5 points, or 0.3%, to 6,084.6 and the U.K. FTSE 100 index inched down 0.2% at 6,628.90.

Advancers

Acciona was also in focus, adding 5.9% as Citigroup said the Spanish construction company transformation was being overlooked by the market as they upgraded their recommendation from hold to buy and raised their price target.

German conglomerate Siemens contributed to the industrial sector gains by rising 1.6% in Frankfurt after it turned to an outsider, Merck & Co. executive Peter Loescher, to become its next chief executive.

Bayer rose 5.1%, helped by UBS raising its price target and a buy recommendation reiterated.

Decliners

In Italy, UniCredit fell 1.6% after sealing on Sunday its 22 billion euros acquisition of Capitalia, in an all-paper deal which will create the second largest bank in Europe.

Shares in retail bank Lloyds TSB edged down 0.3% after it stated that it has agreed to sell its registrars business to the investment group Advent International for 550 million pounds.

Banca Popolare di Milano and Banca Popolare dell'' Emilia Romagna approved a merger deal that will create the seventh largest bank in Italy by branch number with a market capitalization of around 12 billion euros. Banca Popolare di Milano shares slid 4%, while Banca Popolare dell'' Emilia Romagna shares were unchanged.

Commodities

Crude oil for June delivery rose 44 cents, or 0.7%, to $65.38 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for July settlement gained 87 cents, or 1.3%, to $70.29 a barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange. Gold traded in London at $662.40, up from $660.90 late Friday. Silver opened in London at $12.94, down from $12.96.

Currencies

The U.S. dollar was mostly higher against other major currencies in European trading Monday. The euro traded at $1.3481, down from $1.3505 late Friday in New York. The British pound traded at $1.9701, down from $1.9745. The dollar fetched 121.38 Japanese yen, up from 121.15.