BOR: Market Outlook: Indian markets may have flat to positive opening today in line with Asian markets. However, equities may remain ranged....

Market Outlook: Indian markets may have flat to positive opening today in line with Asian markets. However, equities may remain ranged due to the absence of any fresh triggers. All eyes are on the coming budget expectations which will keep markets on stock specific approach. Nifty has supports at 4740-4760 and resistances are at 4850-4900. On overall sentiments markets will trade in a tight range of 4,850-4,750 and it is very difficult to take a call in such a small range.

Inflation spreads to core, at 15-month high of 8.56%: Wholesale price index based inflation soared to a 15-month high of 8.56% for the month of January, with the data showing that inflation had spread to the manufacturing sector, creating pressure on the central bank to hike rates at the earliest.

Global Events to watch for today

• Housing Market Index
• 3 – 10 – 30 Yr Note Settlement
• 30-Yr TIPS Settlement
• Treasury International Capital

Global indices Update @ 8:

Dow Jones : 10099 (Closed)

NASDAQ : 2183 (Closed)

Nikkei 225 : 10060 (+47.04)

Hang seng : 20268 (- 22.00)

SGX CNX Nifty : 4815 (+20.00)

INR / 1 USD : 46.38

On the global counter: Most of the markets were shut including US & Asian; Nikkei, Seoul Composite up.

Stocks in action for the day: GSK Pharma, NMDC, Shoppers Stop, HCC, IVRCL, IRB Infra, Reliance Infra and Sadhbav Engg

GSK Pharma: New product pipeline to boost sales growth: The fourth quarter results of GlaxoSmithKline Pharma were in line with market expectations. The company, which is among the top three players in the domestic market, posted an improved performance across all its business segments of mass market, mass specialty, specialty segments and vaccines.

Punters ramp up NMDC ahead of FPO: The run-up in the share price of the NMDC counter over the past week has once again raised the bogey about valuations among investment bankers managing the company’s impending follow-on public offering. The stock hit a high of Rs 511.95 on February 10, with barely 50% of the trades resulting in delivery. This indicates that punters are ramping up the stock ahead of the FPO, and trying to get institutional investors to bid higher during the auction process.

REC to raise USD 700 mn The state-run finance provider for power projects, Rural Electrification Corporation (REC), plans to raise USD 700 million (Rs 32.2 billion) through External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) and Export Credit Assistance (ECA). The Corporation also plans to increase its exposure in overseas debt markets to 10% of all its loans, from the present 3-4%, as the cost of borrowing in the domestic market is increasing. The Corporation has also planned to take equity stakes in the coming lending opportunities.

Shoppers Stop plans expansion to catch up with competitors Shoppers` Stop, the 18-year-old retail chain promoted by K Raheja Corp, is plans to expand over the next three years to catch up with competition. Though the company was among the first movers in the country`s organised retail market, it has about 1.9 million (sq ft of retail space today. It is considered a slow mover compared to competitors such as Kishore Biyani`s Pantaloon Retail, which has over 10 million sq ft of space, or Reliance Retail, which has over 950 stores covering 4 million sq ft. Aditya Birla Retail has 700 stores with over 2 million sq ft space. Both Reliance and Aditya Birla started operations in 2006.

BEL to grow order book 20% Bharat Electronics (BEL), the Bangalore-based public sector undertaking under the ministry of defence, is likely to end the present financial year with an order book of over Rs 120 billion, a growth of 20% during the year. As on March 31, 2009, BEL had an order book of Rs 100 billion, a top company official said.

Dabur, Emami, Wipro consumer keep mkt buzzing Till two years back, Gauri Sankar Mahato, a peasant from Nimdhi village near Chaibasa, Jharkhand, was barely subsisting on small crop that he cultivated on a few acres. Then he began beekeeping, helped by Singhbhum Gramodyog Vikas Sansthan, a local body associated with Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC). Extracting about 500 kg of honey each season from 50 bee colonies, today Gauri Sankar Mahato is enjoying the sweet fruits of success. Mahato has tasted success largely due to an increasing demand of honey in urban-semi urban areas where, with growing health awareness, people are using honey in place of artificial sweeteners.

NHAI sets new norms for project bidding – bars developers from bidding for new projects if the company has not achieved financial closure of 3 or more projects – BL (Move to hit companies like HCC, IVRCL, IRB Infra, Reliance Infra and Sadhbav Engg)

ATF prices slashed 2.5%, relief for airlines

BILT (Ballarpur Industries) make USD 200 million bid for Malaysian paper company GS Paper and Packaging

Birla Shloka board approves to raise limits upto Rs 75 crore by way of ADR / GDR (recently completed FPO)

Golden Tobacco board meet today to consider development of the properties

Jyoti Structures board approves issue of non-convertible debentures with detachable warrants upto Rs 125 crore

Gwalior Chemical buyback at Rs 120

Multifarious trading open offer at Rs 20/sh