Sensex surges; RIL sets record:There are strong rumours of starting of commerical production in Southen Online Bio Technologies Ltd. The production had already started in the fourth quarter of the last year, albeit not for commerical use:

The market surged in early trade tracking firm global markets, and on good rollover of the April futures contracts to the May 2007 series and on data showing strong FII inflow. At 10:16 IST the Sensex was up 120 points, at 14,338. It had struck 14,383.72, at the onset of the session, which is also its highest in more than two months, since 20 February 2007. The market-breadth was strong. Against 1,178 stocks that rose on BSE, 338 declined. A total of 40 shares also remained unchanged. Gainers outpaced losers by a ratio of 3.48:1. The BSE clocked a turnover of Rs 608 crore. Grasim surged 3% to Rs 2520. The Aditya Birla group company reported robust Q4 results after trading hours on Wednesday. Grasim reported 80.5% growth in net profit in Q4 March 2007 at Rs 474.49 crore (Rs 262.74 crore). Net sales surged 36.2% to Rs 2493.75 crore (Rs 1829.78 crore). Auto makers, which are rate sensitive, continued to rally that was triggered when the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept interest rates unchanged at its momentary policy announced on Tuesday. Tata Motors rose 2% to Rs 774 and Maruti Udyog gained 1.4% to Rs 800.50. Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 1.4% to Rs 1623.50. The stock also hit a high of Rs 1624.80, which an all-time high for the counter. The stock extended gains ahead of Q4 results, which are scheduled today. Six brokerages expect 2.8 - 9.9% growth in RIL’s net profit in Q4 March 2007, between Rs 2571.30 crore and Rs 2749.50 crore, compared to Rs 2502 crore in Q4 March 2006. They expect 3.57 - 20% growth in net sales, between Rs 25419.80 crore and Rs 29450.40 crore, compared to Rs 24542 crore in Q4 March 2006. IT shares shrugged off the rupee’s rise to a fresh nine-year high. Wipro gained 1.5% to Rs 564, TCS rose 1% to Rs 1234 and Infosys gained 0.8% to Rs 2034. A stronger rupee directly impacts the revenue and profits of IT firms, as they derive a lion’s share of revenue from exports. The Indian rupee rose to a fresh nine-year high against the dollar on Thursday while traders bet on strong capital inflows, and as concerns waned that the central bank would intervene to check the currency's gains. At 9:01 IST the rupee was at 40.78 per dollar, its strongest since May 1998. It ended at 40.90/91 on Wednesday. Oil exploration major, ONGC, extended gains on firm global crude oil prices. It was up 1.2% to Rs 985. London Brent crude, currently seen as more representative of global oil prices than US crude, inched 3 cents higher to $68.60, after spiking a day earlier, when weekly data showed the 11th successive draw in US gasoline stocks. Idea Cellular rose 1.3% to Rs 119.10. The company on Wednesday reported robust financial performance for FY 2007 (year ended 31 March 2007). Its consolidated net profit surged 137.6% to Rs 503.26 crore from Rs 211.77 crore in FY 2006. Revenue rose 47.5% to Rs 4412.93 crore (Rs 2989.88 crore). ABB rose 1.6% to Rs 4107. The stock hit a high of Rs 4122.40, which is a new all-time high for the scrip. ABB unveils Q1 March 2007 results today. Six brokerages expect 26.8 - 50.7% growth in ABB’s Q1 net profit, between 65 crore and Rs 77.30 crore, compared to a net profit of Rs 51.30 crore in Q1 March 2006. Sales are seen rising 25 - 49.2%, between Rs 1003.60 crore and Rs 1198.20 crore, from Rs 802.91 crore in the March 2006 quarter. Asia stocks rose on Thursday after strong profits from US firms eased fears on the outlook for corporate earnings, but the dollar sat near a record low to the euro on nagging worries of a slowdown in the US economy. South Korean stocks hit the latest in a string of record highs. It was up 0.7%. Key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, Japan, China, Singapore and Taiwan were up between 0.5 - 1.5%. Figures for US durable goods orders came out stronger than forecast on Wednesday, but failed to fully dispel doubts about the strength of US growth that had been raised by weaker-than-expected housing data a day earlier. The Dow Jones industrial average surged to a record high above 13,000 on Wednesday, driven by stronger-than-expected earnings, while the dollar slumped to a record low against a basket of major currencies after a tepid US housing report. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 135.95 points, or 1.05%, to end at a record 13,089.89. Earlier in the day, it hit a lifetime intraday high of 13,107.45. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index shot up 15.01 points, or 1.01%, to finish at 1,495.42. The Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 23.35 points, or 0.92%, to close at 2,547.89. FIIs resumed buying on Tuesday (24 April) after turning sellers on Monday (23 April). They were net buyers to the tune of Rs 501.50 crore on Tuesday. FIIs have pumped money heavily into Indian stocks this month. Their inflow picked up after IT major Infosys on 13 April 2007, issued a strong guidance for FY 2008, puttting to rest concerns of a US economic slowdown on the IT sector. FII inflow for April 2007 (till 24 April) reached Rs 5552.70 crore. FIIs had pulled out a net Rs 1082 crore in March 2007.