Volatile market closes marginally up
Mumbai: After beginning the day on a buoyant note on Wednesday, 17 May, the stock markets plunged on unconfirmed rumours of tension on the India-Pakistan Border before recovering. News of the London Stock Exchange opening on a weak note, and some uncertainty over the impact of the hike in US interest rates kept sentiment down.

The Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex closed at 4234.23, or 4.1 points above its previous close. At the National Stock Exchange, the S&P CNX Nifty closed at 1311.65, up 4.80 points over its previous close.

Among the gainers were Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum.

Of the 30 Sensex shares, as many as 18 closed higher than their previous closes, and 11 closed lower. One stayed unchanged. On the NSE, 28 of the 50 Nifty shares closed higher, and 22 closed at a lower level.
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Sebi has more plans for Internet trading
Mumbai: The Securities and Exchange Board of India is reportedly about to finalise the second stage of reforms meant to usher in internet trading in stocks. The regulator has addressed issues such as standards for use of wireless application protocol, or WAP, for net trading, allowing online redemption and repurchase of mutual fund units, and subscribing to public issues through the Internet.
Sebi sources is waiting for technology inputs from a professor of the Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai. While Sebi wants to allow the use of the Internet to expand the market’s reach, it wants to ensure some basic security standards. It also wants to evolve guidelines for entities giving investment advise to investors via the Internet.
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Sebi takes bourses to task for slack surveillance
Mumbai: Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India has cited specific instances of inaction at the stock exchanges in the matter of detecting manipulative tendencies in certain scrips that witnessed sharp spurts in the recent past. Sebi has warned that the exchanges’ governing boards would be held as responsible as their executive directors for the assurance of adequate surveillance.
Following increased market volatility and the exchanges’ inability to stop what is perceived to be manipulation, Sebi has held a meeting with the top stock exchanges in the country – including Bombay Stock Exchange, National Stock Exchange, Delhi Stock Exchange, Calcutta Stock Exchange, and Ahmedabad Stock Exchange.

Among the decisions taken: to expand the surveillance staff at stock exchanges; ensure coordination among the exchanges to ensure notification of unusual activity on any exchange; and the documentation of all surveillance-related measures adopted by the exchanges.
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Banks' IPO funding will be studied
Mumbai: India’s central ban and banking industry regulator Reserve Bank of India and stock market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India are forming a technical committee to review the role of banks in the capital market and to streamline guidelines on the funding of equity.

Among the issues the committee will consider are ceilings for advances against shares, as well as prudent levels of margins on advances against shares and initial public offers.

Under current guidelines, the maximum limit for advances against shares to individuals is Rs 10 lakh and Rs 20 lakh in case of loans against dematerialised shares. The minimum margins are 25 per cent for dematerialised shares and 50 per cent for physical shares.
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Hindustan Lever share split on 18 July
Mumbai: The board of Hindustan Lever Ltd has fixed 18 July 2000 as the record date to sub-divide each existing share of Rs 10 into 10 new shares of Re 1 each. The shares of Re 1 will be issued both in physical and electronic form to shareholders who hold existing shares of Rs 10 each.
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Premier Auto not to delist from NSE
Mumbai: Premier Automobiles Ltd will not delist from the National Stock Exchange, according to a company release. The company will, however, delist from the Pune Stock Exchange.
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Hughes Tele.com’s Rs 750 crore IPO
Mumbai: Hughes Tele.com (HTL) will make a Rs 750-crore initial public offer of its shares. It has filed its offer document with the Securities and Exchange Board of India. The Hughes offer will be the largest from the Indian telecom sector.

Hughes Tele holds the telecom licence for the Maharashtra circle, which covers the states of Maharashtra and Goa. The company aims to use the money raised to fund expansion activities of its broadband telecom network covering Mumbai and other cities of Maharashtra and Goa.
The company will go for book-built and retail portions at the same price. Hughes Tele.com is a joint venture between US based Hughes Electronics, Alltel Corporation and Ispat Industries.
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Padmalaya Telefilms to enter market
Chennai: Padmalaya Telefilms Ltd, a Hyderabad-based television software company, has decided to make a public issue of 25 lakh equity shares of Rs. 10 each for cash at a premium of Rs. 90 per share, aggregating Rs. 25 crore. The funds so raised will be used to expand business through studios, marketing network and procurement of films for the company's library.

Padmalaya Telefilms plans to build an integrated TV software studio, to be used for In-House Productions, a part of Sony Television and for third parties.

The issue opens on 31 May 31 and closes on 6 June. The shares are proposed to be listed on the Bombay and Hyderabad stock exchanges.
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