* Rise 0.7 pct; mostly higher Asia, Europe help
* Software cos rally; Kotak says valuations attractive
(Updates to close)
By Ami Shah
MUMBAI, Feb 9 (Reuters) - Indian shares climbed 0.7 percent
on Tuesday, stretching gains for a third day, as European and
Asian markets saw some respite but the outlook remained clouded
by uncertainties.
Export-focused outsourcers such as bellwether Infosys
Technologies (INFY.BO), bigger rival Tata Consultancy Services
(TCS.BO) and No. 3 Wipro (WIPR.BO) led the rise on a view their
recent fall was overdone.
India's economy is picking up momentum and industrial
output in December is expected to have climbed an annual 12
percent, a Reuters poll showed. The data is due on Friday.
[ID:nSGE61808E]
The 30-share BSE index .BSESN closed up 0.67 percent, or
106.57 points, at 16,042.18, after seesawing in early trade.
Nineteen of its components advanced.
"The market should be rangebound over the next few weeks,"
said Sandip Sabharwal, CEO of portfolio management services at
Prabhudas Lilladher, with investors wary ahead of the federal
budget on Feb. 26.
Foreign funds have pulled out $1.7 billion over the past 10
sessions, pushing the main index down 8 percent this year.
In 2009, the benchmark had jumped 81 percent when
foreigners had bought shares worth $17.5 billion.
"The biggest risk in India is the dependence on foreign
capital to fund external deficits," Stephen Roach, chairman of
Morgan Stanley Asia, told reporters in Mumbai.
"It is certainly going to be a tougher market climate this
year as investors come to grips with some of the more normal
after-shocks of the financial crisis," he said, after the big
surge in Asian equities last year.
Infosys rose 2.9 percent and Tata Consultancy Services
(TCS.BO) and Wipro (WIPR.BO) climbed 1.4 percent and 2.5
percent respectively.
Infosys is down 5.2 percent so far in 2010, while Wipro and
TCS have lost nearly 4 and 2.1 percent respectively.
"We reiterate our positive stance on the three Tier-I
companies (Infosys, Wipro and TCS) and see the recent fall in
stock prices as an opportunity to buy these names," Kotak
Securities said in a note.
"We also find the street's concerns on valuations and
potential negative impact of recent political news flow in the
U.S. a bit overdone," it said.
Top mobile operator Bharti Airtel (BRTI.BO) extended
Monday's rise, adding 1.8 percent to 313.80 rupees as investors
chased beaten down sectors. [ID:nSGE6170E7]
Banks rose on positive long-term outlook. Private-sector
lenders ICICI Bank (ICBK.BO) and HDFC Bank (HDBK.BO) climbed
0.7 percent and 0.3 percent respectively.
Top lender State Bank of India (SBI.BO) rose 0.8 percent.
Non-ferrous metals producer Sterlite Industries (STRL.BO)
rose 0.7 percent to 757.55 rupees, as copper prices climbed 1
percent. [ID:nSGE61805X]
In the broader market, gainers outpaced losers in a ratio of
1.2:1 on volume of 341 million shares, less than last week's
daily average of 394 million shares.
The FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares
was up 0.2 percent by 1016 GMT while MSCI's measure of Asian
markets other than Japan .MSCIAPJ rose nearly 1 percent.
The 50-share NSE index closed 0.7 percent higher at
4,792.65.
STOCKS THAT MOVED
* Larsen & Toubro (LART.BO) rose 1.2 percent to 1,462.25
rupees, as the engineering and construction firm said it had
won orders worth $125 million. [ID:nBMA006958]
* Jet Airways (JET.BO) rose 2.4 percent to 485.05 rupees,
after the Mint newspaper reported the largest Indian private
carrier was in initial talks with FedEx Corp (FDX.N) to launch
a dedicated cargo airline. [ID:nSGE61802C]
* Strides Arcolab (STAR.BO) climbed 13.3 percent to 310.50
rupees as the drug maker said it had received U.S. Food and
Drug Administration nod for its generic hypertension drug.
[ID:nBMB009817]
MAIN TOP 3 BY VOLUME
* Jubilant FoodWorks (JUBI.BO) on 14 million shares
* Unitech (UNTE.BO) on 7.6 million shares
* Shree Ashtavinayak (SACV.BO) on 6.7 million shares
FACTORS TO WATCH
* For technical analysis double click on www.reutersindia.net
* Indian rupee report [INR/]
* Indian bond report [IN/]
* Euro rises 1 pct vs yen; hits 3-wk high vs pound [FRX/]
* Oil rises above $72 on weak dlr, Greek rescue talk [O/R]
* Greek bailout speculation lifts euro [MKTS/GLOB]
* Futures point to higher open on Wall Street [.N]
* For closing rates of Indian ADRs INADR
(Additional reporting by Swati Bhat; Editing by Ranjit
Gangadharan)
