FII selling pressure: Sensex plunges 700 pts
Kavit Sharma 01 Apr 2008 | : Business News - India, Stock Markets
Foreign Institutional Investors were net sellers in equities on last day of the quarter, amid the Sensex plunging over 700 points. The Sensex ended the day at 15,644.44, a fall of 726.85 points or 4.44 per cent from the previous close.
FIIs made gross sale of equities worth Rs 3,824.84 crore and gross purchase of Rs 2,959.05 crore, resulting in a net sale of Rs 865.79 crore. According to the information available on the SEBI website, FIIs sold shares worth Rs 114.30 crore on Friday.
Domestic institutional investors, however, were net investors in shares worth Rs 566.03 crore, provisional data available on the Bombay Stock Exchange showed. Brokers also invested in shares worth Rs 310.21 crore for their clients or retail investors.
Govt unveils counter inflation measures
Kavit Sharma 01 Apr 2008 | : Business News - India, General news
In a bid to combat inflation, the government on Monday decided to scrap import duty on crude palm and soya oils and ban export of non-basmati rice and pulses for one more year. These decisions will come into effect from midnight (Monday), but a notification would be issued on Tuesday.
Chidambaram said all edible oils in crude form can be imported at zero duty, while the duty on oils in the refined form would be 7.5 per cent.
The government also decided to raise the Minimum Export Price of Basmati rice to USD 1,200 per ton from USD 1100, to discourage export and increase availability in the domestic market. It also cut import duty on butter and clarified butter (ghee) from 40 per cent to 30 per cent.
The Union Government also advised states to impose limits on stocks of commodities under the Essential Commodities Act, besides asking steel producers not to raise prices.
