The Indian stock market continued to trade firm in the last two hours of trade. All sectoral indices are trading in the green. Stocks from the FMCG, realty, banking and healthcare are leading the pack of gainers.
The BSE-Sensex is trading up by 238 points while NSE-Nifty is trading 78 points above the dotted line. BSE Midcap and BSE Small cap indices are up 1.3% and 0.8% respectively. The rupee is trading at 45.03 to the US dollar.
Most of the Power stocks are trading firm with PTC India Ltd, Coal India, and Torrent Power Ltd leading the pack of gainers. However, Neyveli Lignite is trading weak. As per a leading financial daily, NTPC is planning to raise as much as US$ 500 m from the foreign bond market through a dollar denominated issue. The funds will be used to add 5,000 megawatt (MW) of capacity in the next fiscal. The company wants to benefit from the relatively lower interest rates in the foreign markets. The fund limit may be raised further depending upon the coupon rate. The company management has been organizing roadshows in Singapore, London and Hong Kong for the same purpose.
NTPC has huge expansion plans in the coming years for its coal and gas based power plants. It is also trying to capture the coal assets abroad. The company has asked power ministry to let it raise funds through tax free bonds in the country on which the final call will be taken by finance ministry. The company has around Rs 200 bn of cash reserves on its balance sheet. The stock of the company is trading in the green.
Most of the energy stocks are trading firm as well with Gujarat Gas, Indraprastha Gas, Petronet LNG and Indian Oil Corporation leading the pack of gainers. However, Chennai Petroleum Corporation and Castrol India are trading firm. ONGC has released results for the fourth quarter and FY11. The company reported a flattish growth of 0.7% YoY for net sales during the quarter. The bottomline declined by 26% YoY during the quarter, dragged down by a subsidy burden that more than doubled as compared to last year. The company's crude oil production was marginally down at 24.42 million tonnes (MMT) in 2010-11 against 24.67 MMT in the last year. Gas output was almost flat at 23.09 billion cubic metres. For FY11, the company reported a growth of 12% YoY and 16% YoY on standalone and consolidated basis respectively. The bottomline for FY11 registered an increase of 13% YoY and 16% YoY on a standalone and consolidated basis respectively.
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