• Wednesday was another flat and lacklustre day with Nifty hovering around the 10450 mark. The market is subdued due to absence and the quarterly results will provide the first cue for the markets.
• The big worry for the Indian markets on Thursday will be the fact the oil prices have touched a 2½ year high at nearly $68/bbl. This also represents a worry for the balance of trade which is already hovering around $13 billion per month.
• FIIs were net buyers to the tune of Rs.96 crores while DFIs sold Rs.(-270) crore on Wednesday. Even gross volumes were quite lacklustre and the steam could only pick up once the vacation mood is over in the market.
• Markets were sharply across the board as they celebrated the sharp spike in oil prices. The factory output for most countries has been quite encouraging and that has been the main trigger for global markets. SGX is also in the positive.
• We reiterate our buy call on PNB as we see the stock being a key beneficiary of the IBC process. We expect the stock to touch a level of Rs.220 in the next 3-4 months and traders can position themselves accordingly.
• We have been suggesting Dish TV for quite some time since the Airtel DTH business was sold at a substantial premium to its enterprise value. We expect the Dish TV stock to scale the Rs.100 mark soon.
• With crude oil edging higher, it is time to look seriously at stocks like ONGC and Oil India. We see 25% upside in both the stock from current level as both the stocks are factoring in much lower average price realizations.

We are not making any fresh additions in our equity portfolio today and will wait for the Nifty to give direction.