Trading highlights

GMR Infrastructure was the most active stock with a turnover of Rs 297 crore followed by India Infoline and new issue Nelcast.

Advancers

Software exporting companies stocks advanced on weaker rupee. Satyam Computers spurted 2.6% to Rs 468, and led the gainers while Wipro advanced 0.2% to Rs 510, TCS gained 0.9% to Rs 1,133 and Infosys Technologies added 0.7% to Rs 1,936. TCS announced on Tuesday, June 26 2007, that it had struck an agreement with Scuderia Ferrari to provide the complete software to the Formula one cars of the Italian carmaker.

Auto stocks traded mixed. Hero Honda advanced 0.9% to Rs 676 and Bajaj Auto gained nearly 0.2% to Rs 2,131. Other gainers included Grasim up 0.3% to Rs 2,503 and Gujarat Ambuja Cements, 0.3% higher to Rs 116.

Decliners

NTPC led the decliners, down 2.1% to Rs 150. Reliance Communications declined 2% to Rs 515 and Reliance Energy lost also 2% to Rs 578. Aluminium and copper large-cap Hindalco Industries declined 0.6% to Rs 170 on a decline in global metal prices on Tuesday, June 26 2007.

Tata Motors declined 1.8% to Rs 672 and Maruti Udyog lost 0.7% to Rs 752 but Hero Honda and Bajaj Auto fell.

Ranbaxy Laboratories lost 1.4% to Rs 343 and index heavy Reliance Industries lost 0.3% to Rs 1,698. HDFC Bank and Tata Steel lost over 1% each to Rs 1,091 and Rs 596, respectively.


[R]7:00AM European markets decline Wednesday on weak Northern Rock, Sacyr Vallehermoso.[/R]

European markets declined on Wednesday. By mid-day, Frankfurt Xetra Dax fell 0.8% to 7,796.86, the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.6% to 5,915.36 and London FTSE 100 slid 0.7% to 6,512.1. National benchmarks fell today in all of the 17 western European markets that were open.

Advancers

Banca Popolare di Milano Scrl surged 4.5%. The northern Italian lender failed to approve changes to its company rules that would have allowed the planned takeover of Banca Popolare dell''Emilia Romagna Scrl to take place

Gaz de France, the operator of biggest natural-gas network in Europe, rallied 1.8%. The French government could approve in coming days a long-planned merger between Gaz de France and Suez.

Decliners

Northern Rock plummeted more than 10%. Deutsche Bank AG, the biggest bank in Germany, and Axa SA, the second-largest insurer in Europe, also tracked the decline. Deutsche Bank lost 1.6%. UBS AG, the biggest bank by assets in Europe, declined 1.4%. Axa fell 1.3%, and Allianz, the largest insurer in Europe, dropped 1.6%.

Sacyr Vallehermoso fell 7.4%. The Spanish builder seeking to acquire French competitor Eiffage SA broke stock-market rules in an attempt to take control of the company and must make a fresh takeover bid.

Commodities

Gold for immediate delivery climbed $1.60, or 0.3%, to $642.50 an ounce after earlier trading at $639.50, the lowest since March 14. Silver increased 0.5 cent to $12.255 an ounce.