OCL up on demerger buzz

DALAL STREET SPIKES

The shares of OCL rose over 30 per cent in falling markets after the company fixed the record date for demerger of its steel and real estate businesses into two separate entitities.

March 5 is the record date for ascertaining the list of shareholders for issuing shares of the demerger entities.

The company demerged its steel business into OCL Iron and Steel, and the real estate business into Land Property Development Company.

The shareholders of these demerged entities will get three fully paid-up equity shares of Rs 1 each for every share of Rs 2 held in OCL India.

The stock appreciated 34 per cent from Rs 231.95 to Rs 311.30 last week despite a 4.22 per cent fall in the Sensex. The combined volumes on the counter zoomed 1092 per cent, with 18.34 lakh equity shares changing hands on both the bourses.

OCL India is engaged in the cement, refractory and steel business. The steel business contributed only 15 per cent of the company's total turnover of Rs 904 crore as of March 2007, while the cement (62 per cent) and refractory (23 per cent) segments accounted for the remaining 85 per cent. "" BS Research