Stocks In Action For October 5, 2012

Drug companies Cipla and Natco Pharma had filed an opposition against Pfizer’s patent for cancer drug Sutent in India. In the post-grant opposition, the Delhi patent office rejected Pfizer’s claim for the patent stating that the patent does not involve any inventive step. Post this, the stock prices of Cipla and Natco Pharma are expected to see volatility today.

Quippo Oil & Gas Infrastructure Limited, a subsidiary company of SREI Infrastructure, sold its investment in a vessel that was sold at an enterprise value of USD 122 million which translates into an approximate value of Rs 634 crore. The company is believed to have invested in the vessel at a time when the market had bottomed out. Now that the market has seen an upward swing, the management has taken timely advantage of the investment. With this, SREI Infrastructure Finance’s stocks are expected to see an upward trend today.

The Union Cabinet yesterday cleared pension and insurance FDI bills for parliamentary approval, proposing 49 per cent FDI in insurance. This would push the insurance stocks upwards today. Among these would be Max India and Bajaj Finserv, which are expected to see an upswing today.

Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) yesterday said that operations would return to normal - at the capacity level seen before the labour disputes - at its Manesar facility. This, the management said, would come into force by mid-October and the company would be well-armoured to deal with the increase in demand that would be seen as a result of the festive season. MSIL’s stock prices are expected to see an upward movement today.

The rupee yesterday touched a five and a half month high due to increased hopes on reforms. This has hurt exporters for obvious reasons and the one sector to face a massive toll of this appreciation is the IT sector. This export-dependent sector is expected to see a further downward movement today since the rupee is expected to grow stronger out of yesterday’s cabinet meeting outcome.