Nifty hovers around 7300, Sensex continues to skid; GAIL up

Moneycontrol Bureau11:55 am Boardroom: Strides Shasun reported a good set of third quarter Numbers. The company saw a revenue growth of 30 percent for the quarter with improvement in margins. Arun Kumar, MD, Strides Shasun in an interview to CNBC-TV18 said the numbers are in line with their guidance, adding that it was the first consolidated quarter after the two significant transactions involving Shasun and Arrow acquisition in Australia. According to him synergies are playing a big role in margin improvement post integration of these businesses. The growth trajectory is very strong going forward too. The company has all the necessary engines to grow the business at 20-25 percent CAGR and become a good diversified player across geographies, said Kumar.11:45 am Interview: A mix of factors, such as better recoveries, government's mandatory export quota, alcohol duty waivers and more power purchase agreements signed, are leading to better business prospects for the sugar industry, says Vivek Saraogi of Balrampur Chini . The company posted an impressive set of earnings yesterday, swinging back into profits, and showed solid operational performance. "Prices have increased from Rs 25.83 per kg last year to about Rs 29.50 now. We expect it to go to Rs 32 by April," Saraogi said.11:30 am Market outlook: Sanjay Dutt, Director, Quantum Securities strongly believes the best strategy in the current market conditions is to look at individual stocks, adding that it is the time to use investment strategies and not trading strategies. However, one has to invest for the long-term because historically equity markets have known to generate good returns over 3-5 years, says Dutt in an interview to CNBC-TV18. According to him the domestic fundamentals do not justify Nifty levels below 7200. Basically, it is the global headwinds that are impacting India. There are so many moving parts across the globe that even the central bankers across the globe cannot gauge what is happening around the world, says Dutt.Don't miss: SAIL may post Q3 loss at Rs 1040cr on weak op performance

The market is reeling under selling pressure. The Sensex is down 290.28 points or 1.2 percent at 23997.14 and the Nifty is down 88.65 points or 1.2 percent at 7298.60. About 573 shares have advanced, 1470 shares declined, and 66 shares are unchanged.

GAIL, Sun Pharma, NTPC, ONGC and Lupin are top gainers while Infosys, Coal India, TCS, Maruti and Cipla are losers in the Sensex.

Crude oil prices jumped, shrugging off big drops in Japan's stock market and eroding some of the previous session's losses that were driven by festering concerns about global oversupply.

A declining dollar makes oil prices cheaper because most trade is denominated in the greenback, potentially spurring demand. Still, the glut in world oil markets is unlikely to abate soon, with a Reuters survey showing US crude stocks likely rose by 3.9 million barrels in the week ended February 5.