'Bleak Future For Gdrs'

One key GDR offering, Videsh Sanchar Nigam's $500-600 million issue, is in the pipeline, with a launch expected by the end of the year. Several corporates like Gujarat Alkalies, Saw Pipes, Grasim, IPCL and Premier Automobiles have already deferred their GDR issues due to poor market conditions.

Others like MTNL and India Cements is slated to hit the market later, in the first quarter of 1997.

It (SBI) is a classic India exposure stock, says Amit Ghose of James Capel B&K. The response to the issue, in some ways, would affect GDR market sentiments, he added.

Navin Aggarwal of Skindia Finance said the pricing for future issues would be difficult. When the market first knew of the SBI GDR, the stock stood at Rs 330-340 levels at the local markets...at that time a premium of 10 per cent was expected. The price has fallen by 29 per cent from what the market had expected to get earlier,'' he said.