Indian ADRs shed $2 bn in a week

Indian stocks trading on American bourses witnessed an erosion of $2 billion (around Rs 9,300 crore) in their cumulative market capitalisation last week.

For the week ended November 27, Indian entities listed on the two US bourses - the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq- lost $2.02 billion from their total market cap with ICICI Bank alone shedding $1.37 billion to touch $20.27 billion in just four trading sessions.

The US markets were closed on Thursday on the occasion of Thanksgiving Day.

Another major loser was IT firm Mahindra Satyam (earlier known as Satyam Computer Services), whose valuation plunged by $728 million to $2.9 billion.

During the week, India's Central Bureau of Investigation said the loss suffered by investors in the Satyam fraud may stretch to a staggering Rs 14,000 crore, instead of the initial estimate of Rs 7,800 crore.

Meanwhile, a host of companies have witnessed growth in their respective market caps, including IT major Wipro and private sector lender HDFC Bank.

Wipro was the biggest gainer during the week, whose valuation rose by $631 million to $29.71 billion.

However, copper producer Sterlite Industries' market capitalisation fell by $396 million to $15.51 billion.

Apart from Wipro, another major gainer was HDFC Bank, whose valuation rose by $294 million to $19.02 billion.

The market capitalisation of IT icons-Infosys Technologies and Patni Computer Systems together declined by $328 million.

Infosys Technologies' valuation went down by $171 million to $28.85 billion, while that of Patni Computer Systems fell by $157 million to $1.24 billion.

Other ADR losers include Internet firms such as Sify Technologies and Reddif.com, outsourcing companies such as WNS Holdings, EXLService Holdings and Genpact, telecom major Mahanagar Telephone Nigam and pharma major Dr Reddy's Laboratories whose valuation slipped in the range of $5 million to $67 million.

While, telecom major Tata Communications' valuation rose by $87 million and that of auto maker Tata Motors grew by $27 million.

American Depository Receipts (ADRs) are bought and sold in American markets just like stocks and are issued by a bank or a brokerage firm.