| Frontline stocks recover; mid-caps still weak
MUMBAI: Frontline indices were off the lows of the day as heavyweights Reliance Industries and ONGC witnessed buying interest at lower levels. A re-bound in Asian benchmarks also aided recovery in the large-caps. Tier II and III shares, however, remained under pressure.
At 11:45 am, the Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensex was down 32 points at 17,726.44. The index touched a high of 17,840.64 and low of 17,417.63 so far.
Mahindra & Mahindra (up 1.87%), ONGC (1.86%), Tata Motors (1.85%), Infosys Technologies (1.7%), Bharti Airtel (1.26%) and Reliance Industries (1.19%) comprised major index gainers.
Hindalco Industries (down 5.76%), Grasim Industries (3.65%), ITC (2.33%), HDFC (2.25%) and DLF (2.09%) continued to drag.
The National Stock Exchange's Nifty was 6 points lower at 5161.40, making a high of 5195.10 and low of 5071.15 in trade so far.
Getting Defensive
This year, gold could soar well above $1,000. The most exciting phase of the gold market is ahead. Gold still is cheap. Historically, the average Dow [industrials]-to-gold ratio was about 10 to 1. Now it's 15 to 1. Demand from ETFs is helping drive up prices. These funds now hold more than 865 tons of gold, up 34% from a year ago, and there are more ETFs coming online, including one sponsored by the State Bank of India. India is the biggest end-market for gold. On the supply side, mine production remains weak. South African production has been halved in the past 10 years. Political, environmental and economic issues, plus rising production costs, have kept supply growth down. Gross: What is the long-term real return on gold? Investors are always fascinated as it moves up 5% or 10%, but you never get any income.
Pak Lah: Don’t be racial
SIBU: Malaysians must not harbour racial prejudice in their hearts, said Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. The Prime Minister said there should not be any confrontation among the races as it would jeopardise peace and stability. I want Malaysia to be a peaceful country. We must maintain the good reputation of our country, he added when opening the RM7mil-SMK St Elizabeth Mill Hill Franciscan Centennial Hall at Jalan Oya yesterday. Abdullah said Malaysians should respect and help each other to live in harmony and urged teachers to instil in their students love for the country and goodwill to one another. .
French Support for Chad Dictator Makes EU Uneasy
Since he was elected in May last year, French President Nicolas Sarkozy pledged to break away from the embarrassing old habit of propping up autocratic and corrupt ex-colonial regimes in Africa. But Sarkozy broke his promise last week after a brutal rebel attack in N'Djamena that left scores of civilians dead and forced tens of thousands to flee the Chadian capital. The French government came down on the side of Chad's strongman Idriss Deby, who rose to power in a 1990 coup that had the blessing of Sarkozy's predecessors, leading observers to concluded that the more things change in France's traditional Africa policy, the more they remain the same. France ruled by national interests Bildunterschrift: France has been pushing for an EU mission to stabilize Chad's border with Darfur That policy, called Francafrique, meant serving France's strategic and commercial interests by continuing to exercise post-colonial influence through African rulers.
Thieves in the Nigerian Senate
When a corpse comes hurrying to burial with an erect penis, then something is absolutely wrong. Not only that this has all the ingredients of an abominable embarrassment, the corpse is not heading home pretty soon. If he receives an interment, the odours of gossip would ensure his eternal insomnia in the memories of the living. At the dawn of time, long before the birth of taboo, the coffin was already on record as advising the corpse to relax, and make itself comfortable because their journey and alliance is going to be a very long one. Both of them are marching to eternity together. And that is some pretty, long, unending time. Hurrying to get there is not only a waste of time; it is immortal inconvenience. But be that as it may, a corpse sporting a penile erection is not yet ready, or qualified for this journey.
Georgia: With New Political Landscape, Can Stability Prevail?
Since sweeping to power in the wake of the 2003 Rose Revolution, Saakashvili has carefully cultivated the image of a democratic reformer who would lead Georgia out of its post-Soviet funk and into the promised land of Europe's mainstream. His U.S. education, single-minded determination to join NATO, and open defiance of Moscow led many Western policymakers to view him as a reliable ally in the volatile and strategically important South Caucasus. But in the wake of the January 5 election -- in which Saakashvili won 52 percent of the vote, narrowly avoiding a runoff -- the emphasis has suddenly shifted from big-picture goals like trans-Atlantic integration to smaller-scale domestic issues, like poverty and infrastructure. Moreover, the man who won 96 percent of the vote in 2004 is no longer the undisputed master of Georgia's political universe.
THE HOT 100: Ex-Tiger Maybin, current Tiger Ryan Raburn among players ...
Here's the 12th annual list of Sports Weekly's 100 Names You Need to Know. These are the next wave of players coming into the majors, who, in our view could make the biggest impact during the 2008 season. These aren't necessarily baseball's 100 best prospects. Many top prospects are too far down in the minor leagues to contribute in the majors this season. Others are stuck behind established major leaguers. .
Earnings roundup: Campbell, Hormel
CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) _ The Campbell Soup Co. said Friday its second-quarter profit slipped 3.9 percent as increases in the cost of commodities and energy and higher promotional spending offset a strong sales increase. MINNEAPOLIS (AP) _ Hormel Foods Corp. said strong sales of Spam and a recovery in its turkey business boosted first-quarter earnings by 17 percent. Other stories: DULUTH, Minn. (AP) _ Allete Inc.'s profit slipped 2 percent in the fourth quarter as flagging property values in Florida dragged the value of the power company's real estate, the company said Friday. NEW YORK (AP) _ Greek drybulk shipper Diana Shipping Inc. said Friday its fourth-quarter earnings surged 87 percent on higher charter rates and an expanded fleet, but the results still narrowly missed Wall Street's expectations.
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