News: Indian shares rise to new record

(RTR 04/12/2006) Mumbai - Indian shares rose 0.21 percent to a second successive record close on Monday, led by construction firm Larsen & Toubro Ltd. and Tata Motors, after it reported strong annual sales growth.

The 30-share BSE index closed 29.55 points higher at

13,874.33 points, having hit a record high of 13,912.54 during trade, although gainers matched losers at 15 each.

"The November auto and cement sales numbers were good. I see the market moving upward in a run-up to third-quarter numbers, which are due next month," said Vinod Bansal, director at Ficuswealth.com.

"However, there could be some sector-wise consolidation. Hotels, engineering and cement stocks look good."

The 50-issue NSE index also set a record close, ending up 0.09 percent at 4,001.00, after hitting a record peak of 4,015.25 during trade. In the broader market, 1,466 gainers outpaced 1,071 losers on a volume of 237.6 million shares.

The benchmark BSE index has surged more than 47 percent this year, making it the best performing major market in Asia-Pacific, boosted by foreign fund investments of more than $8.8 billion so far this year, including $2 billion in November.

Construction and engineering firm Larsen and Toubro led the index higher with a 3.1 percent rise to 1,422 rupees.

Tata Motors gained 4.3 percent to 879.25 rupees, while cement maker ACC Ltd. rose 3.6 percent to 1,172.60 rupees, after their respective November sales and shipments figures showed strong annual growth.

Bellwether Infosys Technologies Ltd. gained 0.5 percent to 2,205.45 rupees, but most other blue chip technology stocks were in the red.

Reliance Industries Ltd., India's top private firm, fell 0.1 percent to 1,260.10 rupees.

Elsewhere in the region, the Karachi 100 index closed 0.28 percent higher at 10,417.39 points, while the Colombo market was shut for a Buddhist holiday.

STOCKS THAT MOVED

* Industrial Development Bank of India Ltd. rose 6.6 percent to 79.05 rupees, after a senior official of its bad loans trust said the state-run bank should receive 15 billion rupees from recovery of bad loans in the year to March 2007.

* Defence components maker IST Ltd. rose 5 percent, its maximum daily limit, to 200 rupees after the firm said it would transfer land in Haryana to Gurgaon Infospace Ltd. for 1.11 billion rupees.

* Jewellery maker Rajesh Exports Ltd. rose 9.9 percent to 258.45 rupees after the firm said it had formed an equal joint venture with U.S.-based watch designer Fossil Inc. with an investment of 250 million rupees to make watches and sell jewellery.

MAIN TOP THREE BY VOLUME

* Parsvnath Developers Ltd. on 6.1 million shares

* Welspun Gujarat Stahl Rohren Ltd. on 6.0 million shares

* Balrampur Chini Mills Ltd. on 3.9 million shares