Ril, Rpl Trigger 33% Sensex Drop

Two Ambani group companies with Sensex weightage of 20 per cent accounted for nearly one third of the Sensex's fall in three days in the wake of terrorist attacks in the US. The 30-scrip index lost 320.28 points or 10.17 per cent in three days after September 11, whereas the contribution to the Sensex from Reliance Industries (RIL) and Reliance Petroleum (RPL) declined by 103.17 points or by 32.21 per cent.

The petrochemical giant Reliance Industries suffered a setback with its market cap declining 14.4 per cent in three days.

As a result, RIL's contribution to the index declined by 6168 points to 366.66 on September 14, 2001. Reliance Petroleum reported 17.3 per cent fall in market cap and 41.49 per cent drop in Sensex contribution. The Sensex's contribution of Infosys Technologies declined by 52.07 point. Hindustan Lever, which fell by 4.4 per cent, reported a 26.93 point drop in Sensex weightage.

Infosys Technologies, the worst sufferers among the front-line technology stocks, triggered a 52.07 points fall in the Sensex. Infosys' market capitalisation declined by 16.9 per cent or a whopping 3,917 crore on all round selling by operators and foreign institutional investors. The selling pressure on the scrip attributed to the company's business mix. In 2000-01, the company's sales from North America alone accounts for 73.50 per cent of its sales. The segment wise sales show that company's 33.7 per cent revenue comes from financial services. With a high exposure in financial services, analysts feels that these business may decline in the short term.