Reliance Industries' market valuation tops Rs 9 trillion in intra-day trade

Analysts are betting that RIL will become India's first company to touch $200 bn in market cap

RIL’s market valuation topped Rs 9 trillion in intra-day trade on Friday, becoming the first domestic company to do so. Shares of the company rose as much as 2.3 per cent before giving up some gains to end at Rs 1,415, up 1.4 per cent. At close, the company was valued at Rs 8.98 trillion ($125 billion). 

Shares of the Mukesh Ambani-led firm have added Rs 1.5 trillion in market cap since the government’s decision to lower corporate taxes. The stock has been particularly on fire since the start of 2017, having gained 2.6 times since. Currently, RIL ranks 68th globally in terms of market value. 

Analysts are betting that RIL will become India’s first company to touch $200 billion (Rs 14.3 trillion at today’s exchange rate) in market cap. Earlier this week, BofA Securities ( formerly Bank of America Merrill Lynch) said the company was on the path to $200 billion market cap. 

The brokerage has identified three “incrementally transformational drivers” that will help take the company to that level. These include new commerce initiatives; entry in SME enterprise space with Microsoft; Jio’s fiber broadband rollout; and digital initiatives such as advertising.