India's main index crosses 13,700 points

New Delhi: Indian shares rose 0.66 per cent to another record close yesterday as investors bought stocks in telecom and software firms such as Bharti Airtel Ltd and Satyam Computer Services Ltd.

The 30-issue benchmark BSE index ended 89.76 points higher at 13,706.53 points, its third successive rise, having hit a lifetime peak of 13,740.39 in intra-day trading.

It was the index's 11th record close in 16 trading days so far in November. The index has risen 5.7 per cent this month and nearly 46 per cent so far in 2006.

"The sheer money flows are too much. Even if the price-earnings multiples are high, investors are willing to pay for the growth story that India has to offer," said Gajendra Nagpal, director at Unicorn Investments.

Positive trend

"The market breadth is positive and there is resurgence in mid and small cap companies also."

Twenty of the 30 stocks on the main index gained, but the mood was evenly matched in the wider market where losers and gainers were nearly identical on volume of 243 million shares.

Shares in Bharti Airtel, the top mobile services provider, rose 2.35 per cent to Rs638.2. Fourth-ranked software services exporter Satyam gained 5.4 per cent to Rs477.7.

Companies making capital goods and equipment for the power sector got a shot in the arm after Siemens Ltd and its German parent won a Rs40 billion contract for a power grid development project in Qatar.

Oil in limelight

Its shares closed 9.7 per cent higher at Rs1,330.65 and ABB Ltd ended up 2.9 per cent at Rs3,492.6.

"Oil stocks are in the limelight today after prices of oil moved up,'' said R.K. Gupta, who manages about $66 million of stocks at Credit Capital Asset Management Ltd. in New Delhi.

Reliance Energy Ltd, the country's third-biggest utility by sales, gained after it sold $150 million of debt to fund power projects, the company said yesterday. Reliance Energy sold 10-year bonds to a group of eight US investors on Monday.

Oil and Natural Gas rose Rs11.75, or 1.4 per cent, to Rs856.95.

Reliance Energy sold 10-year bonds to a grouping of eight US investors on Monday, Reliance Energy said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange yesterday.

Overseas investors bought a net Rs580 million worth of Indian shares on Monday, according to the most recent figures on the Securities and Exchange Board of India's website.