Us Order Buzz Lifts Wipro

The Wipro share price rose following buying by operators on rumours that the company has bagged an order from a US firm.

Though there was no official communication in this regard, the stock, which shot up to an intra-day high of Rs 1,790, closed 3.91 per cent higher at Rs 1,768.40 amid a volume of 3.91 lakh shares on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Dealers said the rally at the counter was due to rumours that Wipro has bagged an order worth $40-50 million from a US-based company, AT&T, for system integration.

Meanwhile, analysts said the stock surged on the back of a rally in the US markets in the last two sessions. They said the US bourses rose on signs of a recovery in the American economy. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped by 217.20 points to 10,586.08, while the Nasdaq composite index surged by 56.20 points to 1,858.94. The trigger came after a report on Friday from the Institute for Supply Management which showed expansion in the manufacturing sector for the first time since July 2000.

The stock has risen by 8.29 per cent to Rs 1,713.45 on March 4 from Rs 1,582.15 on February 28. Earlier, in 16 sessions (from February 6 to February 28), the stock had shed 9.25 per cent from Rs 1,753.15 to Rs 1,582.15.

On February 18, Wipro had announced that it has entered into a partnership with Austrian microchip company Austriamicrosystems AG to share wireless connection technologies. Under the terms of the partnership, Wipro and Austriamicrosystems will combine their expertise to jointly produce and market chipsets for the emerging bluetooth wireless market.

Bluetooth refers to a technology standard which enables various electronic devices to be connected without wires at short distances, including mobile phones, to give remote access to the Internet.

The Austrian firm makes microelectronic devices suited to customer specifications and specialises in the automotive, communication and industrial sectors.

In January, Wipro Technologies, an arm of Wipro, had signed a partnership agreement with Rational Software Corporation India to set up a centre of excellence for developing proof of concept and demonstration for software testing, using the rational suite test studio. The alliance will add to the host of services provided by Wipro Technologies in the field of software testing.