The rupee hit a new high against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, pacing gains in most Asian currencies. The dollar fetched 44.07/08 rupees.

Japanese carmaker Suzuki Motor Corporation has said it plans a further investment of 200 billion yen, or $1.66 billion in cars and two-wheelers in India.

Trading highlights

New listing Akruti Nirman was the most-active stock with a turnover of Rs 462 crore followed by Cambridge Tech and Shree Ashtavinayak.

Advancers

Bajaj Auto soared 9.21% to Rs 3,085.55. The company won product design infringement suit brought against Sri Lankan importer and Chinese manufacturer in the western region court of Sri Lanka. Insurance companies were also in focus. Aditya Birla Nuvo gained 9.6% to Rs 1,392 and Max India gained 5% to Rs 1,115, supported by a meeting of a group of ministers on amendments to the insurance bill that will raise the stake of foreign direct investments to 49% instead of 26% as it is currently.

IT large-cap Infosys also advanced 4% to Rs 2,360. Sensex index weight of Infosys free float factor will be raised to 0.85% from 0.8%, from February 12, 2007. Other large-cap advancers included Hindalco which surged 4.5% to Rs 182.10 and ICICI Bank which rose 2.6% to Rs 982 after the bank announced it had lifted the reference rate by 1% for corporate loans and home loans. The strong GDP report boosted select cement large-caps. Grasim gained 3% to Rs 2,877 and ACC rose 1.9% to Rs 1,064. Index heavy Reliance Industries rose 0.2% to Rs 1,392. Free float factor of the company has been reduced to 0.5% from 0.55%.

Decliners

Tata Motors led the decliners, down 2% to Rs 902.20 and ONGC also shed 1.8% to Rs 892. Hindustan Lever lost 0.8% to Rs 207.25. Ambuja Cement Ltd bucked the trend in cement stocks and fell 0.8% to Rs 141.45 and Tata Steel fell 0.6% to Rs 462.25.


8:00AM BHP Billiton announced a surprising $10 billion buyback.
BHP Billiton (BBL: chart) announced surprisingly a $10 billion share buyback Wednesday after reporting a net profit increase of 41% to a record $6.2 billion for the six months period ending in December. The miner's revenue for the first half climbed 22% to $22.1 billion, driven by strong production results for most mineral commodities on soaring prices. BHP said the China-driven surge in commodity prices largely led to the record-high interim result, with higher prices boosting earnings by $3.94 billion. The half-year profit is a record for the company but falls just below market expectations of around $6.3 billion. BHP is planning to add another $10 billion to its previously announced $3 billion share repurchase plan. The equity purchases will include off-market purchases as well as open market purchases. BHP has bought back $1.7 billion of stock at an average price of $18.23 since announcing its earlier buy back plan. Including the $10 billion pledge, BHP has returned $17 billion to shareholders since August 2004.

The largest miner in the world also announced that CEO Chip Goodyear will retire by the end of 2007. BHP said there are strong internal candidates to replace Goodyear but the board will also consider external candidates. News of the buyback plan and healthy profit gain lifted BHP shares 6% on the Australian Stock Exchange.


7:30AM Asian markets mostly rise with Japan, South Korea bucking the trend.
Asian markets advanced broadly on Wednesday. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index lost 114.54 points, or 0.66%, to finish at 17,292.32. Advantest, semiconductor-equipment maker, shed 4.1%, leading the market lower. Investors feared that the company could be hurt by falling orders as chipmakers reduced investment spending due to declining DRAM and flash memory prices. Following suit, Tokyo Electron ended flat while Toshiba fell 0.8%. Retailers and banking stocks also dropped, with Isetan Co. sinking 6.4% to and Resona Holdings Inc. falling 0.9%. Canon, digital camera maker, declined 1.8% on the weaker yen, as it makes 75% of its total sales outside Japan.

Australian S&P/ASX 200 advanced 0.5% to a record 5,899.80. BHP, the largest mining company by market value in the world, jumped 5.9%, as its first-half net income rose 41% from a year earlier. The benchmark Straits Times Index in Singapore gained 13.35 points, or 0.4%, to close at 3,236.6. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index rose 24.49 points, or 0.1%, to 20,679.69. Shares were boosted by a recovery in China-related firms, particularly banks, after they declined in the last month. Bank of China surged 1.6%. In China, stocks rallied on renewed interest in banks and other index large-caps. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index gained 1.5% to 2,716.18. The Shenzhen Composite Index jumped 1.9% to 666.96, while in South Korea shares dropped, breaking a four-day rally, on losses in banks and shipbuilders. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 0.2%, to 1,426.29.


6:30AM European stocks trade higher Wednesday morning on strong earnings.
European markets advanced on Wednesday. By mid morning, Frankfurt Xetra Dax gained 0.4% to 6,901.18, the CAC 40 in Paris added 0.3% to 5,693.04 and the FTSE 100 in London was 0.1% higher at 6,354.3.

Advancers

It was earnings news that boosted markets in early trading. Publicis, a French advertising agency, advanced 4.1% after it posted higher-than-expected full-year sales and said that its operating margin for the year would surpass the one in 2005. Peugeot, French carmaker, added 1.1%, after releasing a narrowing operating margin for 2006 but above expectations. Group sales had risen in Q4 following declines in the previous two quarters. BHP Billiton topped forecasts with its first-half results, as net profit rose 41% to $6.2 billion, while higher metals prices boosted the rest of the sector. Billiton surged 4.8% and Antofagasta added 1.5%. BHP Billiton announced a $10 billion share buyback on Wednesday.

The utilities sector was buoyant as expectations of consolidation firmed up Endesa of Spain announced late on Tuesday that the 41 billion euros offer from Eon of Germany was approved and the Spanish utility recommended the deal to shareholders. Endesa shares gained 0.7%, while Eon added 2.4%.