7 of top-10 firms lose Rs 1.13 lakh crore in market value; Airtel, RIL lead decline

Seven of India’s 10 most-valued companies saw their combined market capitalisation fall by Rs 1.13 lakh crore last week, as benchmark indices extended their losing streak amid continued caution in the equity market.Bharti Airtel and Reliance Industries accounted for the biggest declines, with their valuations falling by more than Rs 40,000 crore each. The BSE Sensex lost 276.32 points, or 0.35 per cent, during the week, while the NSE Nifty declined 76.35 points, or 0.31 per cent.The benchmarks did stage a strong recovery on Friday, helped by buying in IT stocks after positive global technology cues. However, the gains were not enough to prevent the indices from ending lower for a third straight week, Mishra said.Reliance Industries continued to hold the top position among India's most-valued companies despite losing Rs 40,056.32 crore in market value during the week. Its market capitalisation stood at Rs 17,38,119.27 crore at the end of the week.Bharti Airtel recorded the largest decline among the top firms, with its valuation falling Rs 40,500.85 crore to Rs 11,74,462.30 crore.HDFC Bank was the next major loser, with its market value declining Rs 11,558.35 crore to Rs 11,09,600.70 crore. Bajaj Finance lost Rs 10,086.05 crore, taking its valuation to Rs 6,70,535.57 crore.Larsen & Toubro's market capitalisation declined Rs 6,473.45 crore to Rs 5,55,987.49 crore, while LIC shed Rs 3,162.50 crore to Rs 5,32,817.81 crore. Hindustan Unilever's valuation fell Rs 1,550.73 crore to Rs 4,72,361.83 crore.The trend was not uniform across the top 10 firms. TCS emerged as the biggest gainer, adding Rs 16,643.20 crore to its market value, which rose to Rs 8,48,079.71 crore.ICICI Bank also gained Rs 4,475.28 crore, taking its valuation to Rs 10,22,805.73 crore, while State Bank of India's market capitalisation increased by Rs 599.99 crore to Rs 9,65,568.75 crore."Indian equity markets ended the week on a cautious note, extending their recent corrective phase as concerns over global interest rates, geopolitical uncertainty and volatility surrounding the new closing auction session weighed on investor sentiment," Ajit Mishra, SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd, said, as quoted by ANI.Meanwhile, the ranking of the top 10 most-valued companies remained unchanged. Reliance Industries was followed by Bharti Airtel, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India, TCS, Bajaj Finance, Larsen & Toubro, LIC and Hindustan Unilever.Get the latest Business News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.