Market Musings:

Asian stocks gained, led by Canon Inc. and LG.Philips LCD Co., after Japan's industrial production climbed to an all-time high and the Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly rose above its record closing level. ``The focus is on economic indicators that could wipe away some of the negative sentiment stemming from recent weak numbers'' in Japan, said Mitsushige Akino, who oversees $468 million in assets at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. in Tokyo. ``There's some relief resulting from the Dow reaching that high.'' The Morgan Stanley Capital International Asia-Pacific Index climbed 0.3 percent to 128.52 as of 10:45 a.m. in Tokyo, adding to a two-day, 2.2 percent rally. The measure is set for 1.4 percent advance this week, snapping a three-week decline, and a 1.3 percent gain this quarter. Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 0.4 percent to 16,087.34. Mizuho Financial Group Inc. rose after the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said industrial production climbed for the first time in two months. Stock indexes advanced in China, Taiwan, Australia and New Zealand. They fell elsewhere in the region. Philippine markets were closed for a second day amid a typhoon.

US Markets:

U.S. shares gained for a fourth day in New York, briefly pushing the Dow Jones average of 30 industrial companies above its 2000 record closing level by almost 6 points. Crude oil declined 0.3 % to $62.76 a barrel, damping inflation concerns. Oil recently traded at $62.50. The Dow Jones industrial average reached a milestone in Wall Street's nearly seven-year recovery from corporate upheaval, economic recession and terrorism, briefly trading above its record high close of 11,722.98 set on Jan. 14, 2000. The index of 30 blue chip stocks surpassed its record, rising to a high of 11,728.46 in early morning trading. Stocks closed only modestly higher amid a dearth of news that could motivate investors; still, it was the market's fourth straight advance. "These numbers sometimes tend to act as magnets and the market is sometimes pulled up toward it," said Russ Koesterich, senior portfolio manager at Barclays Global Investments in San Francisco. The last time the Dow stood at these levels, Wall Street was propelled by wide-eyed investors eager for a slice of the wealth being generated by the dot-com and housing booms. Traders raced to buy any stocks that looked remotely promising, catapulting the major indexes sharply higher. But after early 2000, the market began to crumble, slowly at first as doubts about the high-tech boom set in. Signs of recession accelerated the decline, and then the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and their aftermath, including earnings declines and losses in many industries, sent stocks plunging. Wall Street made its way back slowly, with investors behaving more cautiously and limiting their exposure to risk as they slowly regained faith in stocks. What has also helped is more than four years of sturdy corporate profit growth despite the threat that energy prices and interest rates would hurt consumer spending and companies' bottom lines. More recently, the Federal Reserve's decision to pause after more than two years of interest rate hikes and evidence the economy is moderating, not heading for a hard landing, gave investors the impetus to push the Dow past its high close. On Thursday, the economic news was mixed, and didn't appear to have much impact on trading. The Commerce Department revised its gross domestic product number for spring downward to 2.6 percent from 2.9 percent. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported that the number of new people signing up for unemployment benefits dropped last week. The department said new applications filed for unemployment insurance declined by a seasonally adjusted 6,000 to 316,000 for the work week ending Sept. 23. The latest showing on claims was close to economists' expectations for claims to total around 315,000 last week. [With inputs from Internet]

Today's Inputs:

The markets should open in green today as all the factors looks positive from Global and Indian Prospective. Look at Sugar (Due to recent developments.....Mainly on account of that research report by a brokerage house. But please avoid getting into junk...), Auto Ancilliaries, Cement , Chemicals(due to fall in crude prices) and Realty Sectors (as the prices of Steel and Transportation costs are set to decrease). I had earlier advised all not to sell Balrampur Chini Mills and yesterday was a feast day for them. Hope all have enjoyed my call on Sarda Plywood Ltd ( which hit the upper freeze yesterday), Flat Products and Equipments Ltd and Haldyn Glass Ltd. Samkrg Piston & Rings Ltd had a board meeting on 27th September, 2006; the details of which could be uploaded on BSE Site (www.bseindia.com) soon. The June Quarter Results of the company were excllent, with EPS of more than Rs.7---the results getting boosting from the huge forex earnings. Happy "Durga Pooja" , "Navratri" and "Dussera" to all... More in the following postings.... Best wishes, Suman Mukherjee India. www.eindiabrokers.com www.bcozindia.com