[R]1:00PM European markets closed mixed, with oil majors weighing.[/R]
European stocks closed mixed, reflecting losses for major oil companies and some positive broker upgrades across several sectors. The energy sector suffered considerable weakness as the dispute between Russia and Belarus over oil and gas prices continued. In London, heavyweight BP declined 3.1% as the firm reported that Q4 production declined from a year earlier. Total''s shares sank 1.3%, Statoil declined 3.1% and Norsk Hydro lost 1.2%. On the other hand, travel stocks rose as oil prices declined, with airline Deutsche Lufthansa, up 1.5% and rival Air France-KLM, up 0.5%. Outside the energy sector, U.K. retailer Marks & Spencer dropped 4% after disappointing Q3 sales. On the side of the gainers, Siemens rose 1.8% after the company said that it had sold the air-intake module and air-filtration division to Mahle. Shares of France Telecom rose 2.7% after UBS upgraded the carrier to buy from neutral. The French CAC 40 rose 0.3%, the German DAX added 0.1%, while London FTSE 100 inched up 0.03%. Declining crude also pressured the oil-heavy Russian and Norwegian markets, with the Russian RTS index falling 6.4% and the Oslo All-Share index moving 1.5% lower.

Crude oil prices slipped to a year-and-a-half low Tuesday on mild winter weather and lower fuel demand. Oil prices have slipped 12% since the beginning of 2007. Crude oil February contract fell $1.62 to $54.47 a barrel. London Brent slipped $1.28 to $54.32. The U.S. dollar was mixed against its major currency rivals. The euro was quoted at $1.2991, down from $1.3019. The dollar bought 119.43 yen, up from 118.74. The British pound was quoted at $1.9391, up from $1.9378. European gold prices turned mixed. In London, gold traded at $608.83 per troy ounce, up from $607.10. In Zurich, the precious metal traded at $606.55 per ounce, down from $607.50. Silver closed at $12.26, up from $12.18.


[R]11:30AM Oil prices drop weighed on the market. Tech shares pushed the Nasdaq up.[/R]
U.S. market averages turned mixed in late morning trade, reflecting a steep decline in crude oil prices and optimism about the technology sector. Energy stocks weighed on the Dow as crude oil prices dropped 2.7% to $54.58 a barrel. BP plc (BP: chart) slipped 3.5%, Chevron (CVX: chart) lost 2.1%, and Exxon Mobil (XOM: chart) lost 0.6%. At the same time, General Electric (GE: chart) helped offset losses for the blue-chip average, rising 1% on reports that the conglomerate is seeking bids for its plastics unit. Tech stocks were among the biggest drivers in the session with news coming from the annual Macworld Expo in San Francisco and Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Apple Computer (AAPL: chart) rose 1.9% on expectations the company will announce its first mobile phones.

Investors were also eagerly awaiting the kick-off of the new earnings season, with Alcoa (AA: chart) reporting after market close. The world''s biggest aluminum producer is expected to report earnings of 65 cents per share on sales of $7.63 billion. Sprint Nextel (S: chart) fell 10% after releasing a profit warning for 2007 and as a result receiving several analyst downgrades. On the corporate news front, Verizon Communications (VZ: chart) rose 1% after Venezuelan President said he will nationalize the country''s largest telecoms company, CANTV, in which Verizon holds a share. In late morning trading, the Dow rose 19.63, or 0.16% to 12,433.12. The S&P 500 index was up 1.16, or 0.08%, at 1,414.00, and the Nasdaq composite index added 7.13, or 0.29%, to 2,445.33. Bonds held steady, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note slightly higher to 4.66% from 4.65% late Monday.


[R]10:30AM NY- 9:30PM Mumbai The Sensex falls Tuesday on selling pressure on IT stocks.[/R]
The Sensex on BSE closed 85.82 points, or 0.63%, lower to end at 13,652.15. The market was highly volatile with intra-day high of 13,748.42, and low of 13,493.38, trading in a range of 255 points. The market-breadth was strong at the beginning of trade but turned weak as the session progressed. As 1,274 shares advanced on BSE, 1,369 declined and 54 shares were unchanged. Of the 30 stocks in the Sensex 19 declined, while the rest advanced. The turnover on BSE was Rs 4,698 crore, higher than Rs 3,731 crore on Monday on several block trades on BSE, as also on a debut of Cairn India resulting in a high turnover. The turnover on NSE was Rs 8,806.52 crore, as compared to Rs 7,619.67 crore on Monday.

Economic news

The government is considering a reduction in petrol prices in the wake of falling petrol and diesel prices if international oil prices continue to decline and if crude falls below $ 50 a barrel level, Petroleum Secretary M S Srinivasan stated today.

Trading highlights

Cairn India Ltd., the Indian arm of British explorer Cairn Energy Plc, declined 20% on its stock market debut on concerns about likely transportation delays. Cairn India market debut was at 148 rupees, 7.5% below its issue price of 160 rupees a share, and slipped to a low of 128.65. It had raised $1.18 billion in its IPO, which was below its expected pricing range between 160 and 190 rupees.

Cairn India was the most-active stock with a turnover of Rs 445.55 crore followed by Gujarat Ambuja and Great Offshore.

Advancers

Gujarat Ambuja Cements led the advancers, up 2.45% to Rs 140. The stock rose after a block deal of 2.25 crore shares was traded on BSE at Rs 136.65 per share. Oil and gas large-cap ONGC gained 1.45% to Rs 924.10, and index heavy Reliance Industries edged 0.46% higher to Rs 1,283, on a volume of 4.71 lakh shares.

Outsourcing company HOV Services surged 10% to Rs 198.55, as it obtained a mandate to collect accounts worth $700 million in the healthcare sector on Tuesday. Punj Lloyd gained 2.10% to Rs 1,020, as the company won an offshore platform project worth around $ 290 million from ONGC.

Decliners

IT stocks were hit ahead of the third quarter earnings season. Satyam Computers led the decliners, down 4.40% to Rs 465, Infosys, which is the first to announce its Q3 results, shed 0.59% to Rs 2,193. Reliance Communications dipped 2.10% to Rs 426.20 on reports that it intends to raise up to $1.2 billion by way of a Global Depositary Receipt issue.

Cairn India stocks were offered on BSE at Rs 140 on BSE, a decline of 12.50% compared to the IPO price of Rs 160 per share, trading within Rs 155 - Rs 128.65 price-range. The stock ended sharply lower, at Rs 137.50.

HDFC Bank shed 1.73% to Rs 1,010, following rumors of a bonus issue. HDFC was down 1.73% to Rs 1,565, SBI plunged 3.30% to Rs 1,172.90 and Tata Motors lost 2.33% to Rs 906. Ranbaxy Laboratories edged 1.20% lower to Rs 414, following reports that it may bid for the generic drug arm of Darmstaadt-based German pharma major Merck.

The capital goods sector was the biggest decliner among sectoral indices. It lost 130 points, or 1.5%. KEC Infrastructure declined 3.4%, Alstom Projects was also down 3.3%, Crompton Greaves dipped 2.5%, and Siemens India lost 1.8%.