Mumbai: The combined market valuation of nine of India’s 10 most-valued listed companies declined by Rs 2.74 lakh crore last week as a sharp sell-off in domestic equities weighed on heavyweight stocks, with HDFC Bank emerging as the biggest laggard.
The decline in market capitalisation came in line with a weak broader market, as the Sensex plunged 2,091.68 points, or 2.67 per cent, during the week, while the Nifty dropped 566.85 points, or 2.32 per cent.
Among the country’s top-10 most-valued companies, Hindustan Unilever was the only firm to register an increase in market valuation.
Reliance Industries, Bharti Airtel, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Bajaj Finance, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and Larsen & Toubro all witnessed erosion in their market capitalisation.
HDFC Bank recorded the steepest decline, with its market value falling by Rs 1,18,383.91 crore to Rs 11,43,985.90 crore.
The lender’s shares slumped 9.40 per cent during the week amid investor concerns over pressure on its margins.
Reliance Industries, India’s most-valued company, saw its market capitalisation shrink by Rs 65,429.82 crore to Rs 17,29,661.44 crore.
State Bank of India’s valuation dropped by Rs 26,814.94 crore to Rs 9,36,953.84 crore, while Bajaj Finance lost Rs 26,802.74 crore in market value to end the week at Rs 6,30,471.54 crore.
The market capitalisation of Life Insurance Corporation of India declined by Rs 15,116.74 crore to Rs 5,33,007.56 crore.
ICICI Bank’s valuation also slipped by Rs 6,223.84 crore to Rs 10,28,217.93 crore.
Bharti Airtel’s market value fell by Rs 6,021.64 crore to Rs 11,85,046.13 crore, while Tata Consultancy Services lost Rs 5,191.95 crore, taking its valuation to Rs 8,15,480.75 crore.
Engineering and infrastructure major Larsen & Toubro also witnessed a decline in market capitalisation, with its valuation falling by Rs 4,092.79 crore to Rs 5,20,747.89 crore.
In contrast, Hindustan Unilever bucked the broader trend, adding Rs 152.73 crore to its market capitalisation, which stood at Rs 5,03,928.59 crore at the end of the week.
Despite the losses, Reliance Industries retained its position as India’s most-valued listed company, followed by Bharti Airtel, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India, Tata Consultancy Services, Bajaj Finance, Life Insurance Corporation of India, Larsen & Toubro and Hindustan Unilever.
(IANS)
