Rate cuts - Back again!!

The Fed Chairman held out hopes for another rate cut to boost the U.S. economy which has been under a lot of constrainst, of late, due to the soaring oil prices, credit concerns and the weakening dollar. The rate cut should act as a shot in the arm for the economy which many analysts are expecting to enter into a period of recession pretty soon!

But well, all said and done, we have to wait and watch until December 11 to see what course of action does the Fed resort to keep the economy afloat! However, in the same vein, I must stress that rate cuts are not the way forward. Sure, in the short-term, they help inject liquidity in the markets but in the long-run, resolution of the underlying factors needs to be implemented for the economy to move forward again.

All of this should have a mixed effect on the Indian economy. Until the future course of action does not become clear, it would be prudent to hold on to your investments/liquidity and not react to the market moves!

Also, those looking to diversify their portfolio may look to invest their savings in the following stocks:

India Bulls Financial Services
DLF
Tata Motors / Maruti
Infosys
Tata Power
NTPC / PowerGrid
ICICI Bank
Ranbaxy
Bharti Airtel

Investments in the aforementioned stocks, in proportions not exceeding 20% of capital, will provide an invetsor with a diversified portfolio, capabale of generating returns >50% in the next 12 months!

Hope you enjoyed reading this post!! ;-)

Which way is the Sensex heading??

The last 2 trading sessions have been quite rosy for the U.S. markets. The Dow Index, in fact, recorded its highest 2-day gain in the last 5 years! The Sensex, which had been so far responding to cues from the Dow, seems to be sharing none of the current euphoria! Sure, the markets have opened on a high in the last 2 sessions but the way the market lost its gains in the wee hours of the session suggest that investors remain wary of the euphoria being exhibited in the U.S.

Maybe, it has to do with the gold & the oil prices and the Re/$ rate; maybe it's plain and simple aversion to the euphoria on display! Or maybe it's got to do with the fact that the Indian economy is "insulated" from fallouts in the U.S. economy! The Sensex clearly is not giving any signs of going up; maybe the ride down from the dizzying heights touched in October has taught investors to exercise caution!

I actually like this caution; it seems to suggest that sentiments aside, the fundamentals need to justify any future growth. We won't go up just because everyone around us is going up and fine, we'll heed global cues but we'll chart our own course too!! However, I'm sure, many of you feel quite the opposite as well. Quick gains are welcome any day, but for an economy to mature, we need to rein in our sentiments and reward the underlying fundamentals!

I might be completely off the blocks for all I know but this, only time will tell! Wait & watch; stay hooked on to the ride because it's so so SenseXXXational!

Ek garam chai ki pyali ho...

Seeing the cup of coffee (the first of many.. Sigh...) placed quite strategically in front of me, I started to hum "Ek garam chai ki pyali ho.. Koi usko pilane waliiiiii ho...... Ha ha, even started picturizing the song as well: Salman Khan in his normal semi-nude state, sipping chai on a beach (chai on a beach: now this ain't normal) and some beautiful gals in undescribable swimsuits serving him tea and running after him and dancing with him & doing what not!!

As it is, I don't feel like reading a bit today! Plus the day seems so dull n boring (ok ok, so this is normal!!) n I don't feel like writing/reviewing/reading any reports today (again, such cribbing is normal).. But coffee ka cup dekh kar mujhe wo gaana somehow yaad aa gaya!! Mujhe sallu mia jaisi body-shody to nahi chahiye but a few of those babes (sigh.. wishes. .wishes.. wishes).. God, tussi sun rahe ho na?? Aise waiso ko diya hai.. Kaise kaise ko diya hai.. Mujhko bhi to lift kara de.. Thodi si to lift kara de!! (Ha ha ha, Mr. Adnan Sami, I'm not itching for your body size & shape either!!)

All due respect to all those who were mentioned in here.. I'm going to fetch myself a hotter cup of coffee.. This one has gone stale, err, cold!!

Ek garam cafi ki pyali ho.. Dhak dhak dhik.. dhak dhak.. koi usko pilane wali ho.. Jai (Anu) Malik Sahib..

Bo(o)ingggggggggg day..

Gosh today feels like such a stifling day.. even the markets have opened weak, again!! Though I expected the Citibank deal with Abu Dhabi banks to provide some relief to the market's down-the-hill journey!!

Anyways, the corrective effect is no where to be seen.. The market is down, just a shade under one percent. Auto stocks seem to be doing well, actually, I'm only tracking the scripts of Bajaj Auto, Maruti and Tata Motors. While the last 2 names have not given a good return in the last month or so, scripts of Bajaj Auto are set to go higher on the back of high sales volume for the month of November.. Sounds good to your ears?? Sample this: UBS has a target price of Rs. 3033/- on Bajaj Auto; Motilal Oswal has just released a target price of Rs. 2800/-.. The current market price is slightly over Rs. 2600/-.

Hey how many of you track Jindal Steel?? It's share price rocketed by over Rs. 4000/- in 2 trading sessions flat! This stock sure offers an amazing run for speculators and volatility traders to trade on!

Oh well, that's all from my end.. My coffee is also getting cold, so lemme go and attend to some dull boring things!! For those of you with nothing better to do, go and read James Patterson's Mary, Mary! An awesome novel (so far) on a serial killer..

Women are smart, huh?? ;-)

Barbara Walters of Television's 20/20 did a story on gender roles in Kabul, Afghanistan , several years before the Afghan conflict.
She noted that women customarily walked 5 paces behind their husbands.

She recently returned to Kabul and observed that women still walk behind their husbands.
From Ms. Walter's vantage point, despite the overthrow of the oppressive Taliban regime, the women now seem to walk even
further back behind their husbands and are happy to maintain the old custom.

Ms. Walters approached one of the Afghani women and asked, "Why Do you now seem happy with the old custom that you once tried so desperately to change?"

The woman looked Ms. Walters straight in the eyes, and without hesitation, Said, "Land Mines."

MORAL OF THE STORY: Behind every man is a smart woman.

My dream gal!!

What Kind of Girl Will You Fall For?
	You will fall for the cutie. You like girls with a personality. She's got to have a nice smile and a sense of humor. Although she doesn't have to be a model, she has to be that girl-next-door.
Find Your Character @ BrainFall.com

Real estate: Place your bets on this sector!!

Hey I'm back!! Sorry was just a bit busy with my work but here I'm, back with my small chitchats!!

Today, the hottest sector in the Indian economy is the Real Estate Sector!! This sector is witnessing a lot of action, with both foreign and domenstic players jumping in the fray! Billions of dollars are being pumped in, not just from the foreign players but also some big Indian firms!!

Donald Trump Jr. has turned his investment eye towards India and with Goldman Sachs, and Trinity capital, both announcing infrastructure plans worth billions of dollars, the real estate boom is here to stay and how!

A perfect time to get some infrastructure/cement companies in your portfolio.. Or maybe you can look to invest in the many infrastructure mutual funds being launched in the near future. Don't delay because the future is here.. It's the time of the real estate sector to shine, so join the party fellas!!

Major trouble over Nandigram Issue

A major portion of the city erupted yesterday when police lathicharged a mob near Ripon street. The mob was comprised of supporters of the All India Minority forum, who were demonstrating against the Nandigram violence and demanding the revokation of Taslima Nasreen's visa, on grounds that she was anti-islamic.

I'm not trying to use this blog to slam/support someone's stance but but how can one justify pelting the police with stone and setting up roadblocks all over city to disrupt city life for 3 hrs (9 am to 12 noon) as ways to demonstrate against issues? Who do these people have problem with - the public or the government? Why don't they try and draw attention to issues in a more peaceful manner, rather than resorting to such crippling tactics? Look at where they have gotten Bengal to; we had a curfew slapped upon us yesterday from 10 pm to 6 am in select areas!!

The situation was sick and extremely volatile; we were evacuated from our offices, just imagine!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyways, don't expect the market to send you any early XMas gifts; expect more correction at current levels given the lack of any positive news and negative worldwide sentiments!! Stay put, Dear Investors!!

Negroponte's Vision of the future - A small extract

Nicholas Negroponte needs no introduction but still for those unfamiliar with the name, he is the co-founder and Director of MIT and the author of "Being Digital" .. Read the book if you haven't done so yet!!

'' I don’t know if you find the same as me, but my laptop today is slower than the laptop I used ten years ago. It’s less reliable and harder to use. And I ask myself: “Why has the complexity got into such a state that all the mobile and computer technologies we have today are so hard to use these days?” It’s like an SUV, where the vehicle uses all the gas to move the vehicle rather than the person.
Every year it costs 50% less to deploy silicon, so you put more on it. We just keep adding features to make sure that you get to replace your phone every year. All of this is making electronics obese. It’s not just phones and PCs, but cameras. I mean, for example, you press the button on a camera these days and the flash doesn’t go off. This is because it’s computing and digitising the picture, and by the time it goes off, you’ve missed the moment.
Another trend involves people becoming conscious of power – as in power consumption in watts etc – it’s mobility and heat and wanting devices that don’t have fans to cool them. When you use a laptop and it’s fan comes on you should be offended. Why is it burning all that heat?
Soon you’ll hear people talking about watts rather than gigabytes therefore. My watts are less than yours and all that.
Displays will change too. I mean have you ever tried to use a laptop or phone in sunshine? You can’t see the darned thing. When something that basic has not been sorted, it’s just plain stupid.
I have a few other topics I want to pick on and so the second topic is the future of telecoms.
Telecoms is now wireless, and that is not just related to being mobile but also in terms of rollout. For example, I was looking at how Bangkok could improve its telecoms a few years ago. The city of Bangkok was then dug up for three years and they got a nice new telecoms systems. It was all cables underground. In Bolivia, Ericsson deployed a telecom systems and it was rolled out in two weeks this year, because it’s wireless. And all the developing world is now enjoying the rollout of new systems in weeks or days that took us months and years to build because we wired it and they’re wireless.
Second, the idea of a signal having to go out to a tower and bounce around to another tower and then back to here is not right if you’re sitting next to each other in the same room. Instead, it should bounce directly between phones. Peer-to-peer mesh networks will build broadband telecoms so that everyone’s cellphone is both a phone and a router. So we now have a zero cost network with no mobile carrier involved. And we have a powerful telephone system right here, and the more people who come into the room the more powerful the system is.
Third, reach. Reach is extraordinary. You can go to villages in South East Asia and the remotest parts of Africa, and you have to go a fair way to find no coverage. Firms are scrabbling fast to connect the most remote villages in the world to the telecoms network.
This year alone 1.2 billion handsets will be sold. That’s an awful lot in one year when we only have 6.5 billion people on the planet! So telecoms is on a roll, and growth is 99% in the developing world.
Third topic, the future of education. And I mean primary education.
When the United Nations created its millennium goals, they said by 2012 every child should have primary education. Today there are 100 million children who don’t. In Nigeria and Pakistan, half of kids don’t get primary education and, in some areas like Afghanistan, 75% of girls get no primary education. Meanwhile, the good news is that no country in South and Central America is below 90% access to education for the first four grades.
But if you look at how children learn, especially in their first five years of life, school is not involved. You learn from family. In those first five years, you have a great deal of learning – learning to walk, talk, and common sense about how the world works.
In those five years, you did all your learning by interacting with the world.
You learned how to stand up to reach something, you learned to talk because you want to communicate. That whole process of learning through doing, involved you interacting. No walking or talking teachers. Then you go to school at five or six, and you’re told to stop learning that way and instead read and listen. You will learn through being told, not by doing. Very little learning after first grade is like the learning you were doing before, and this will change. My prediction is that you have computers at home and you will have kids who will learn more from interacting with those computers than dealing with people who tell you what to do. Learning interactively from computers will be a major innovation.
That’s why I’ve launched a new charitable cause called “One Laptop per Child”. http://laptopgiving.org/en/index.php
We’ve built a $100 laptop that’s low powered, can be used in sunshine and will be given to every child in the developing world. One laptop per child.
How have we done it?
I went to a display company and said “I want a display that’s very basic, can be used in sunlight and is low powered and very cheap”. They said “that’s the opposite to our corporate strategy though. We build bright, complex and expensive displays”. I then said “I need 100 million units a year”. They’ve now invested $2 billion to build the lab that’s building the display for this unit. We won’t use all of that capacity, but we can change corporate strategies if we have scale.
We wanted a CFO and, as a non-profit, we wanted a good guy but couldn’t offer six or seven figure salaries. So how do you get a CFO. So you put out a job description where the salary is zero and we got the best CFO’s on the planet turning up. Many were retired or had made money out of Silicon Valley or similar.
As a non-profit with a good cause, it’s simple to get the best.
So what we have achieved so far is building a laptop that run on 2 watts (most laptops run on 40 watts). It does several things your laptop cannot do. It can fold up into a games machine which your laptop cannot do. It can be used in sunlight which yours cannot. It can be used in a mesh network which yours cannot. And it costs $100 to make.
So when Bill Gates says get a real computer, I say what are you talking about? I use a $100 laptop and it works. It’s cute as hell and gets all the publicity we need.
The key is low power, sunlight readability and mesh networking, and this is key because it’s for kids.
I go to schools and find children being taught Word, PowerPoint and Excel. That’s criminal. They’re not office workers. They’re not graduating at eight years old to do office work. So on this laptop there is no PowerPoint, Spreadsheet or stuff. It’s not a productivity system, it’s a learning system. The goal of this laptop is to learn. It’s achieved through construction (making things), having access to the internet (learning things) and by interacting (doing things).
My aim is to get a laptop to every child. That is our non-profit charitable cause and mass production is about to start.
We use a factory which makes 40% of the world’s laptops, and the assembly line is amazing. The factory is run by Quanta, a Taiwanese company with factories in mainland China, and there are Dells going down the assembly line one minute. 23 minutes later there’s Apple’s going down the assembly line, and 23 minutes later our laptops are going down the assembly line.
The first roll out is 250,000 machines but they’re contracted to produce 1 million a month. To put that in perspective, the total manufacturing of laptops today is 5 million a month. So at some point in the near future we will be producing 20% of the world’s laptops per month. That gets people’s attention.
We’re starting in Nigeria, Brazil and Thailand. They’re all big, not that poor, and for some reason I had access to the head of state in each country. The reason the laptop is green and white is because it’s the national colours of the Nigerian flag to thank them for being so supportive.
There are five principles to follow in the one laptop per child programme:

The laptop belongs to the child – it’s theirs – they take it home and they own it – it’s not a laptop owned by the school or the state – immediately the maintenance goes down – the kids sleep with their laptops, they clean them and look after them. They’re proud of them. In Cambodia, we gave out 50 laptops three years ago and three years later only 1 has broker. And the child with the broken one wouldn’t give it back for repair because it was his. So we gave him a new one and then he gave us the old one back.
It must be for kids of low ages – 6-10years old – not grown up kids.
You must have saturation – all kids must have one, not just a few. If a family has three children, then every child gets one, not just the oldest. That’s to ensure the older children teach the younger ones and vice versa.
There must be connection for the laptops. We charge around 10cents so it is cheap.
Finally, the system must be free and open. We use Linux open source to run the laptops and there’s a key on the laptop called “View Source” which, when you press it, shows you the commands running and you can edit there and then. You can import all open source software as you want and it’s easy.
We’ve now pulled the trigger to build the machines and have a quarter of a million about to go out that costs us about $188 each to make. From later this year, we’ll then sell these laptops for $399 in Canada and USA. That means for each one sold over here, you have funded one laptop for a child in Nigeria, Brazil and other countries. In other words, buy one, give one away.
We’ve already got 50,000 orders.
One laptop per child.
You’ll see this being discussed on talk shows, soaps, radio and TV. About 80% of Americans will know about this by November 12th and will be talking about it. My aim then is to give these away in Rwanda, Haiti and other war-torn countries because, by then, I have a zero-dollar laptop to give away. Not $100 laptop. A zero dollar laptop.
People ask if they can buy one overseas, and yes you can but, due to regulatory issues, please do it through a friend in Canada or the USA, as they get a $200 tax benefit and the FCC has issues if you tried to order outside the USA.
There aren’t many good news stories in the world. This is one of them. I hope you liked it.

Wat a typo mistake!!

Hey people read the article below!! it says the sensex has slipped below the 18k mark.. Actually the sensex has slipped below the 19k mark only yet.. Quite a few of us would have had a heart attack if the sensex had lost over 1000 points in one session only..

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Sensex_slips_below_18000_banks_worst_hit/articleshow/2558148.cms

The story was there on the front page of Economic Times.. Never expected them to make such silly errors!! Guess they should get their headlines edited before publishing them!!

Hmmm.. Speechless!!

Well don't have much to say today.. Pretty busy actually with initiating new coverages on a few companies.. Plus I got an online self-learning computer-based exam to complete.. Just got the link today from our Director, as such no timeline has been given but me being me, I'll be looking to finish it off as soon as possible.

The site claims to help teach financial analysts how to improve their financial models. On the face of it, the site looks damn good! Don't know about the material inside..

As usual it was pretty chilly in the morning and as all of you must have guessed it, yep, I'm yawning right in front of my pc!! Anyways, me going back to my reports, my tutorial and my yawning!!

Take care people.. :-D

N.B. Hey I got a friend of mine looking into propsective mid-cap companies; will update you on the same as soon as I hear from him!!

Drip, drip drip.. The (sen)SeXXX goes .. .. ..

The Sensex sure is intent on losing all the extra weight around its waist, right?? It's shedding tears and lots of points and money at a pretty fast rate. However, as the Sensex showed last week, it can just as easily recover the lost ground.

The large caps have taken the brunt of the beating with DLF and Tata Power, in particular, getting a special beating. But the real action is in the small- and mid-caps!! I was seeing a news item on NDTV profit which showed the phenomenal rise of some of the small cap stocks in the last 3-4 months. Also find attached a similar article from Economic Times. [http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Markets/News__Views/Stocks_News/Mid-cap_stocks_continue_to_stay_in_focus/articleshow/2554700.cms]

While the large caps may be fundamentally sound and heavily invested in, I believe it's time to turn your focus to the small- and mid-cap companies. Many of them are trading cheap; these companies are certainly not all that understood, the trick to profit here would be to invest in a stock which the market underestimates and then hold on to it because sooner or later, the market will reward the stock for sound fundamentals. Even if the market somehow misses the stock, rest assured that the FIIs will not!

Well that's all I have time for at the moment, see you all sometime later!!

Concerns surface again..

Well, the Dow again shed a lot of weight yesterday. So did most of the stock exchanges around the world. All of this came on the back of Goldman Sachs' downgrading several large banks and the resurfacing of housing concerns in the U.S.

These concerns will impact the Indian markets negatively, expect a downward correction of 1%-2%.. Given the bull run in the last one month, these corrections are becoming routine affairs. The last bull run was driven by large caps; small- and mid-caps missed most of the action. For the next phase of the bull run, the market, as a whole, needs to participate, not just few select stocks/sectors.

As a friend of mine commented, mid-cap banks have started to move; keep a sharp eye on them.. You will also do well to adopt a wait-and-watch strategy rather than panicking and selling off your holdings. Don't expect the volatility to sizzle down just now, it took a lot of time building up; it will take some more time, maybe another quarter or so, to settle down!! [Settling down sounds quite crude and confusing but I guess this is the best I could do. .. Sigh .. .. ..]

Anyways, play safe and keep a sharp watch on the market movements!!

Why am I here??

Gosh, this is so irritating and frustrating!! After a long, tiring trip, don't I deserve some rest??

But as life will have it, I'd to wake up early today, couldn't rest the entire day yesterday and I'm so sleepy now in office that I pressed some frigging button and my entire last post went pssssssssssstttttttttttttt....

Not as if I'd many stock tips to offer.. Currently struggling to keep my eyes open.. Additionally, I'm not certain of the market movement yet, so I guess I'll refrain from making any comments on the direction the market will take in the days to come..

That's all from my side; lemme submit this post before it vanishes in the air like my previous attempt!!

Another followup!!

Against When Where Result Bowling Batting
West Indies 1/31/2007 Vadodara India won by 160 runs 100* 
West Indies 9/14/2006 Kuala Lumpur West Indies won by 29 runs 141* 
Pakistan 2/6/2006 Peshawar Pakistan won by 7 runs 100 
Pakistan 4/12/2005 Motera, Ahmedabad Pakistan won by 3 wickets 36/1  123 
Pakistan 3/16/2004 Rawalpindi Pakistan won by 12 runs 45/0  141 
New Zealand 11/15/2003 Hyderabad, Deccan India won by 145 runs 40/0  102 
Australia 10/26/2003 Gwalior India won by 37 runs 39/1  100 
Namibia 2/23/2003 Pietermaritzburg India won by 181 runs 152 
Sri Lanka 7/11/2002 Bristol India won by 63 runs 113 
England 7/4/2002 Chester-le-Street No Result 105* 
Kenya 10/24/2001 Paarl India won by 186 runs 146 
South Africa 10/5/2001 Johannesburg South Africa won by 6 wickets 51/0  101 
West Indies 7/4/2001 Harare India won by 6 wickets 11/0  122* 
Australia 3/31/2001 Indore India won by 118 runs 139 
Zimbabwe 12/8/2000 Pal Road, Jodhpur Zimbabwe won by 1 wicket 35/1  146 
Sri Lanka 10/20/2000 Sharjah Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets 22/0  101 
South Africa 3/17/2000 Vadodara India won by 4 wickets 43/0  122 
New Zealand 11/8/1999 Hyderabad, Deccan India won by 174 runs 186* 
Sri Lanka 8/29/1999 Colombo India won by 23 runs 120 
Kenya 5/23/1999 Bristol India won by 94 runs 23/0  140* 
Zimbabwe 11/13/1998 Sharjah India won by 10 wickets 16/1  124* 
Zimbabwe 11/8/1998 Sharjah India won by 7 wickets 4/0  118* 
Australia 10/28/1998 Dhaka India won by 44 runs 38/4  141 
Zimbabwe 9/26/1998 Bulawayo India won by 8 wickets 127* 
Sri Lanka 7/7/1998 Khettarama, Colombo India won by 6 runs 13/0  128 
Kenya 5/31/1998 Calcutta India won by 9 wickets 4/0  100* 
Australia 4/24/1998 Sharjah India won by 6 wickets 12/0  134 
Australia 4/22/1998 Sharjah Australia won by 26 runs 27/1  143 
Australia 4/7/1998 Kanpur India won by 6 wickets 19/0  100 
New Zealand 5/14/1997 Bangalore India won by 8 wickets 35/0  117 
Zimbabwe 2/9/1997 Benoni India won by 6 wickets 16/0  104 
South Africa 12/14/1996 Mumbai India won by 74 runs 114 
Sri Lanka 8/28/1996 Khettarama, Colombo Sri Lanka won by 9 wickets 29/1  110 
Pakistan 4/15/1996 Sharjah India won by 28 runs 40/2  118 
Pakistan 4/5/1996 Singapore Pakistan won by 8 wickets 18/0  100 
Sri Lanka 3/2/1996 Delhi Sri Lanka won by 6 wickets 41/0  137 
Kenya 2/18/1996 Cuttack India won by 7 wickets 26/0  127* 
Sri Lanka 4/9/1995 Sharjah India won by 8 wickets 112* 
West Indies 11/11/1994 Jaipur India won by 5 runs 31/0  105 
New Zealand 10/28/1994 Baroda India won by 7 wickets 27/0  115 
Australia 9/9/1994 Khettarama, Colombo India won by 31 runs 15/0  110 

Hey just a contribution from a slightly lunatic friend of mine.. A tribute to Sachin (or so he claims)

When many people say how many of Sachin's hundreds have come for a
winning cause,Here is analysis of each of those centuries he scored when
INDIA lost and reason why it went in vain.

Out of the 41 hundreds, 11 hundreds have gone in vain.
1. 137 off 137 (Strike rate 100) balls Vs SriLanka at Delhi in 1996
World Cup .
India scored 271/3 in 50 overs. The only other 50 score was from Azhar.
SL made 272 in 48.4 overs. Manoj Prabhakar had 4-0-47-0. He also opened
in the innings and scored 7 of 36 balls.
2. 100 of 111 Balls Vs Pak in Singapore- Apr 96 .
India 226 all out in 47.1 overs, When Sachin was out score was 186/4 (We
cant blame because next 3 are match fixtures) . Pak had a reduced target
of
187 from 33 overs.
3. 110 of 138 Balls (Slower but...) vs Sri Lanka In Colombo - Aug 96.
Again India 226 for 5 in 50 overs, Only other 50 score from Azhar (58 of
99 balls !!!) .Sachin has also bowled 6-0-29-1 , the second most
economical bowler and the only wicket taker (SL were 230/1 in 44.2 ) of
the match next to Srinath. 7 bowlers were used by Azhar.
4. 143 of 131 Balls (!!!) Vs Aus at Sharjah, Apr 1998.
This was chasing under lights. The qualifying match before the final.
The whole world knows about this match. Still one interesting point,
when Sachin was out India were 242 at 5 at 43 overs. Target was 276 in
46. Still India finished at 250/5 scoring just 8 of the next 3 overs.
Great performance by Laxman and Kanithkar indeed.
5. 101 of 140 Balls against SL

SACHIN IS GOD

Kabhi Alvidaaa na Kehnaaaaa

Hell-o-people,

Wooo!! the sensex rising by almost 5% yesterday, feeling a lil blue, huh?? Well, the sensex sure has surged in the last two trading sessions; however, I think the bull run yesterday was slightly overdone. I expect profit booking to be at the top of the agenda for most people in today's trading. As such, the market outlook remains pretty volatile in my opinion!

N oh well, the weather in calcutta is simply awesome!! Cloudy skies, nice lovely chilly breeze and a met warning of a cyclone hitting the Bengal coast tomorrow! Newazz.. as they say, enjoy today for what it's worth! So, I'm taking a small break from my nonstop market commentary. Hoping to catch all of you in the pink of your health on Monday!!

'Til then, kabhi alvidaaaaaaa naaaaaaaaaaaaaa kehnaaaaaaaaaaaaa... Kabhi alvida na kehna!! I'll be back soon!!

Ggggrrrrrrrrrr......

So how many of you flushed with the greens today?? With the sensex rising by almost 5%, there was cause for everyone to be happy? But is this bull run sustainable?

I think tomorrow, we should see some profit booking; with the sensex recovering most of its losses in the last two trading sessions, tomorrow's session seems bookmarked for profit booking! Barring any major news (positive/negative), expect volatility to reign supreme.

I take this opportunity to thank all of you for visiting my blog and getting back to me personally with your feedback, comments and suggestions. Going forward, this blog is expected to become more sector and stock specific. I intend to focus on some fundamentally good scripts; however, this will not be possible until the middle of December. I'll be looking to cover as many good stocks as possible. Possible candidates include (but are not limited/restricted to) BHEL, NTPC, PowerGrid, Dr. Reddy's, Neyvile Lignite, Welspun Gujarat, DLF, ICICI Bank..

I also welcome your suggestions regarding the analysis of stocks not listed above! This might be my last post before leaving Calcutta; I wish you a lovely period and happy reading and lucky investing!!

Ciaooooo.............

N.B.: Hey, I might be back with another post tomorrow.. Let's see!!

A green day today!!!

Heyloooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!

Well, the outlook for the market looks quite rosy today, what with the Left softening its stance over the Nuclear deal and solid earnings from Goldman and Wal Mart helping the Dow rise over 2% yesterday. Add to it the fall in the oil prices on the back of increased production and it seems we are back to seeing the bull run of days gone by.

However, market sentiments still remain highly volatile; 1 bad piece of news and we'll be back to where we were 2 days back: facing major corrections! Long-term investors need not fear while those invested for the short-term (with not much of an appetite for risk) would do well to take thier profits and exit the market. Sectors that are expected to do well remain infra and power. Expect a strong rally in the Reliance sector as well.. IT stocks may also benefit from the positive market outlook!

Well, got a hell lot of work to cover. I'll be out of town till the beginning of next week, beginning tomorrow.. So I don't think I'll be able to make as many posts with as much frequency as I've been so far, beginning tomorrow! Lots of (new) beginnings, I can see! Wish you good luck with all your profits and investments!

N as a sweet friend of mine just reminded me, Happy Children's Day! ;-)

A new... DAY ... Has come..

Oh well, a start of a new week, a new day, with promises of it being better than the previous ones.. Even the air has a different feel about it today. There was a slight, unmistakable chill in the early-morning air today!! Something makes me feel this week is gonna be different from the other preceding ones!!

Or, it may just be the fact that I've itching to meet and hang out with my friends?? Whom I'd met in September but gosh, M i again itching to hang out and have truckloads and (coffee) mug-fulls of masti with them??

Or, it might be my WISH that may God smile down upon the IT stocks this week and may the market swing in the green?? Well, IT stocks be damned, but the market sure is up, a welcome increase and relief for quite a few people.. Hope the market gains momentum and shows us a glimpse of its past bull runs!!

But there is one stock which has me baffled.. While the market has been on a never-ending spiral, shares of Motilal Oswal have increased by around 300 points since the closing price of Rs. 1197 on November 6, 2007. Now I'm wondering, what is driving this stock so so high?? Despite the sensex shedding most of its gain in the last week, this stock has climbed new heights, increasing by almost 25% in a single week?? God hasn't been this kind to the IT stocks, so what or rather who is driving this stock to such heights??

Frankly, I got no idea. I'm quite morose here because I liquidated my holding in Motilal @ 1350 only.. Within the span of a day, the stock has rocketed to 1495!! Is there something I don't know or I've overlooked which the market has noticed and is rewarding the company for?? Too many questions, too few answers.. After what happened with RPL the last week, I'm quite circumspect, to say the least!

Hoping that one of you will be able to provide me with some reason for the stupendous increase in the stock price.. 'Til then, I'm busy sulking over my notional loss!!

Another follow up on Gold!!

Hey with the stock market falling like there is no tomorrow, it makes sense to put your money where it can rest safe in the hands of a good portfolio manager. Yes, I'm referring to putting your money (& tensions) in a mutual fund. The sectors where you might be interested in seeking some extra gains in the near future are Power and Infrastructure..

Both sectors are performing brilliantly and the outlook looks quite rosy for both.. So instead of investing in select companies, let a mutual fund handle your money. A good portfolio manager and a large MF allows you to have small investments and exposure to the entire sector as a whole. This comes at a rough cost of around 3% (assuming 3% entry fee and 1% exit fee if you exit your position within 6 months).. There are also administrative charges to take care. This sort of investment is recommended for investors who cannot afford to track the stock market on a regular basis.

Apart from these two sectors, investment in gold is also advisable!! Gosh I sure am becoming repetitive and hoarse here, shouting to any one who listens, to invest in gold as a long-term hedge. You may check some more details using the link provided below:

http://www.usfunds.com/docs/pdf/GloomDoomBoom.pdf

The markets have been in a decline for quite some time now. The outlook does not inspire much confidence either. So look to put your money in a MF and relax!! I know, this is quite a lazy form of investing, trusting some one else with your money but you sure need a big heart and some luck to profit in this market!

Hope you have a lovely day ahead!! :-D

Alternate Investment tips..

Hey People,

The outlook for the market is not looking too good in the face of continuing credit concerns in the U.S., a weak dollar and rising oil prices. The current downturn in the stock market will provide a few attractive entry points in quite a few scripts.

However, for those of you who are apprehensive of entering into the market now, why don't u look at investing in real estate and gold? Well, u sure can buy n keep some gold for some women in your home, wat say?? They sure will be pleased!!

I've posted a link on my page which lists a few reasons that justify an investment in gold; take out some time to go through them, if you wish! It'll make for an interesting read; do check it out.

For those of you who are not so keen on buying gold and storing it, you may look to put your money in a Gold fund. These funds invest in physical gold and gold-mining companies, saving investors the hassles associated with the storage and quality of physical gold. There are a lot of gold funds in the market. Do proper research before taking any decision. One fund worth checking out is the DSP Merrill Lynch'sGold ETF Fund.

Going on to the real estate sector, property prices are on the move; given a limited amount of habitable land, property prices are going to continue their upward climb. Instead of directly investing in land, you may look to invest in infrastructure companies like DLF. You may also put your money in L&T and UltraTech. Currently, I'm running a bit short of time but I assure you that I'll be following up with a detailed analysis on these in the coming few days.

Well, the situation in Calcutta ain't too good; the political tensions here are not going to go away so soon.. We have a 24-hr bandh tomorrow; lets see how effective it turns out to be. Anyways, I'm going out of town on Thursday, should be back in the beginning of next week. Got a fair bit of travelling to do as well in the next few days.

Hope you all have a nice time,

Take care & NJoy!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Diwali

Hey Dear BloGigens,

Wishing you all a wonderful and a happy Diali.. Hope you all played safely and had a lovely time with your near and dear ones!!

Well, seems like the start of a bear phase, huh?? I will say that a correction is quite welcome at this point in time, atleast there are a few entry points visible now.. The global factors are having a big impact on the Sensex movements; expect further volatility in the days to come!!

The Sensex should find some support at the 16,500-17,000 mark.. Good time to buy some underperforming stocks.. Stay away from auto stocks, they r in a horrible state of being at the moment..

Well, enuf for now.. With India losing the second ODI and with the Sensex falling like a kite with no strings, I am in a sombre mood (sorry, I don't think I got the phrase regarding the kite right!! Anyways I hope I got my msg across!!) ..

Ciao .......

Happy Diwali!!

Wishing all my readers a very happy Diwali!!

Hey people, have fun, play safe, avoid using those high-sound emitting crackers, spare a thought for our environment and your neighbours and of course, ur own safety!! Don't throw/burn any type of crackers from your rooftops!! it's dangerous; might hurt a pedestrian walking by..

Rest all is fine, hope you spend a lovely evening with your family!! For office-goers, come on yaaron, wrap up work fast and head home!! Shit, the same applies to me as well, preparing reports in my office even on Diwali!! Gosh don't we all need a break??

NJoy!!

Oh well...

Hey senSEXigens,

Wats up?? Howzzz ur portfolio looking today?? Well, lucky you if ur portfolio is in the green.. Overall, there is a quite of negativity.. The dollar continues to weaken and with credit concerns refusing to abate in USA, the signs aren't that good for the Indian market, isn't that so??

Plus, throw in the rising oil prices to the mix and account the steep increase in the gold prices yesterday and all signs point to a downturn, around a 1% correction in the markets today!! Might be more, after all, we trade more on emotions than fundamentals!!

Whichever way you trade, emotionally or fundamentally, I'm sure many of you have quite a few butterflies in your tummy!! I can only ask you to exercise patience and pray that I turn out to be wrong!! For those of you wanting to enter the market, well, wat better time than now?? Make the most of the festive season with such heavy discounts on offer!! Put ur money in banks and IT stocks!!

N for those of you with no liquidity, well, aaj Indo-Pak ka match hai, y don't you go and enjoy that for a change?? Take ur mind off the market; relax, spend time with ur family, soak in the festivities!! Try and put ur feet up and relax; I know, I know, easier said than done!!

Newazzzzzzz... I still got a lot of work to cover! So me off to my Biotechiesssssssss!!

Wish you all a lovely day and happy choti Diwali!! May the markets be up 5% today, now won't that really spice up the atmosphere??

Gosh wat a day!!

Hey people,

Happy Dhanteras to you all!! Hope you all are going home with loads of bags full of clothes, gold and diamond jewelleries, and happiness in ur heart!!

As for me, well I'm going home with a pretty heavy heart!! blame it on my lack of sleep or the hours spent in front of the pc, racking my brains or the fact that the IT team has banned me from trading during office hours!!

Gosh, brimming from frustration and tiredness, I'm too tired to vent my anger and frustration at the moment!! Go home, enjoy urself.. I don;t know if I'll even get to see the outside world today!!

Ciaooooooooooo

Oh god!!

Hey people,

Sorry yaaron, aaj blog aur main, dono hi down hai with a choked nose, throat and an aching body!! Aaj to shayad hi kuch investment tips ya thoughts share karu!!

Waise, how many of you have ICICI bank in ur portfolio?? I believe it's a good stock.. Again with IT stocks showing signs of weakness, it will be a good time to build a few positions in them.. For those of you who already have these shares in ur portfolio bt r stuck, well, its a time to wait and watch.. Quite a lot of uncertainty doing the rounds in the market, so better stay put and sit tight!!

Oh gosh, didn't I mention that I won't be dispursing with any thoughts today?? lekin kya kare, ye leaky nose insaan se kya kya kaam nahi karvata!! Newazzz.. free me gyan baatne ki mujhe aadat hai, mere erudite k times se!! I only hope that kisi ko nuksaan nahi pahuche.. Do ur research b4 investing in any of these companies. .Afterall it's ur money, ur savings, ur life...

Main to chala loo me, apna nosu nikalne!! Ciao!!!!!!!

A slightly late update...

Hey people,

So how has the market treated ur investments so far??

Well, I got one of my readings wrong; had expected to get a good return in the short-term from Maruti but gosh, has the stock tanked!! I still stand by my belief that maruti is a good company, fundamentally, but I guess I will have to stay invested for a longer time than I'd previously estimated to get a good return from the stock..

And, the markets really started on a positive note today, didn't it?? I sure did book some profits there.. Then the market again nosedived (profit booking, most likley) n now the market is again continuing its forward march!! Volatility traders must be having a gala time out there; assuming they are able to time their entry and exit points perfectly!!

Any idea about the government's tax policy on the hotel industry?? the Govt was mulling a tax cut but I don't know the final result yet!!

As for the sub-prime concerns, well yes, the Indian markets are going to take their cue from the American markets.. However, the Indian market is not exactly being driven by the movements of the American market.. There are a lot of market forces at work here which may help alleviate the negative impact of a downfall in the U.S. economy..

Enough for now... My earnings updates on the U.S. biotech industry await my return!! Adieu.. :D

The markets today..

I know I know, a starnge way to start off ur first blog but with me being a stock market analyst, wat else did u expect anyways??

Hey hey hey.. So here is my brief take on the markets today.. I'm expecting the markets to open in teh green, taking their cue from the other asian markets.. The U.S. markets staged a good recovery during the close of trade and this seems to have rubbed off on the Asian marekts as well..

For those of you having substantial positions, I think it will be a good time to book profits.. Look to build positions in RNRL and RPL and of course the power sector, most notably, PowerGrid and NTPC.. Have a 1-yr investment horizon and I'm sure you will reap ample riches for putting ur money in these stocks!!

Well, that's all for now.. Hope to do another update later in the day!!

N.B. Ranbaxy and DLF are also good investments but more on them sometime later!