Hotel Leela gains; property sale to reduce debt

Reuters Market Eye - Hotel Leelaventure shares rise 9 percent, a day after the company sold its IT park building in the city of Chennai for 1.7 billion rupees to Reliance Industries, according to an exchange filing.

Traders say the hotel operator will be able to reduce debt, a critical factor given higher interest costs led Hotel Leelaventure to post a net loss of 970 million rupees in the October-December quarter, despite what analysts called a better-than-expected top line performance.

(Reporting by Manoj Dharra)