MSCI rejig impacts blue-chip share prices

Weightage of FMCG major Hindustan Unilever will go up 0.5% on MSCI Index, while that of HDFC Bank will drop by 3.7%

Re-balancing in the MSCI India Index impacted share prices of several blue chip stocks, including Hindustan Unilever and HDFC Bank, on Friday. As per changes, which were to be effective from Monday, weightage of FMCG major Hindustan Unilever will go up 0.5 per cent on MSCI Index, while that of HDFC Bank will drop by 3.7 per cent. Shares of Hindustan Unilever closed at Rs 600.95, up 7.87 per cent, most since July 2013. Meanwhile, HDFC Bank shares dropped two per cent to Rs 794.1.

According to a Bloomberg report, NTPC, Aurobindo, Sun  Pharmaceutical, Dr. Reddy’s and Mahindra are some of the other stocks where index provider MSCI has increased weightage. While shares of companies, including Power Grid, United Spirits, Cairn and Jindal Steel, have seen a cut in their weights.

Indices formulated by MSCI are widely tracked by global ETFs and other passive fund managers.