In The Line Of Fire

The markets went on a tailspin today following a report in an afternoon newspaper that the Unit Trust of India ex-chairman has furnished taped instructions from the Prime Minister's Office on investments to Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalitha.

The sentiment turned negative in the post-noon trading session, pulling down the indexes as the report, if true, can cause major jitters at the Centre which may also lead to uncertain political situation.

Rumour bug

HCL Technologies has suffered a setback with the Newton's Law Fund reportedly offloading 2.5 lakh shares of the company.

The Cowboy Fund is also indicated to have discarded the shares on a couple of negative rumours.

Market indications are that HCL is unlikely to meet its own estimates in the current financial year ending June.

The company had earlier indicated to churn a net profit of around Rs 480 crore for the current fiscal with higher revenues coming from offshore projects.

There were also rumours of a possible lay-off at the company. Reports that the company promoters have donated around 10 lakh shares to a varsity has sent shivers down the market fearing that these shares may find their way to the bourses.

Q2 push

The Dutch Brokerage was reported to have been chasing Hindustan Lever today in an extension of its excitement over the performance of the company in the second quarter.

Most of its businesses registered improvement in market share and with indications of a normal monsoon, the company is likely to better its performance further.

However, Cap-It-All has been a seller at the counter over the past few days. This is surprising as Cap-it-all is a long-term player, and in the current scenario, there are few safe good long term bets.

Digital divide

The Savvy Fund Manager has cast an eye on its old favourites. It continued to strip shares of Digital Equipment today along with shares of Satyam Computer Services.

In the last two days, the fund is reported to have distanced itself from the stock to the tune of 5 lakh shares.

Digital Equipment is one of the most sought-after technology stocks and its performance for the quarter ending June has been impressive.

Besides assured contracts from its parent Compaq, its business from other sources has reported strong growth.