Airtel leads Rs 65,000 cr m-cap erosion among top-10 companies

New Delhi: The combined market capitalisation of six of India’s top-10 most valued firms declined by Rs64,734.46 crore in a holiday-shortened week, with Bharti Airtel emerging as the biggest laggard amid overall market weakness.

Benchmark indices ended lower for the sixth straight week, reflecting sustained volatility. The BSE Sensex slipped 263.67 points (0.35%), while the NSE Nifty fell 106.5 points (0.46%). According to Ajit Mishra of Religare Broking, sentiment remained under pressure due to escalating US-Iran tensions and a sharp spike in crude oil prices, triggering broad-based selling at the start of the week. Although markets recovered mid-week on easing geopolitical concerns and softer oil prices, volatility persisted.

Bharti Airtel saw the steepest erosion, with its valuation dropping by Rs29,993.07 crore to Rs10.20 lakh crore. ICICI Bank lost Rs12,845.81 crore, while Bajaj Finance shed Rs11,169.36 crore. HDFC Bank’s m-cap declined by Rs7,822.79 crore, Hindustan Unilever by Rs2,349.59 crore, and State Bank of India by Rs553.84 crore.

In contrast, four companies posted gains. Tata Consultancy Services added Rs22,359.78 crore, Infosys rose by Rs12,374.76 crore, and Larsen & Toubro gained Rs6,575.43 crore. Reliance Industries also saw an increase of Rs3,518.45 crore, retaining its position as the country’s most valued firm.

Despite intermittent recovery, markets remained under pressure due to foreign institutional investor outflows, rupee weakness, and lingering inflation concerns.

Reliance Industries continued to lead the valuation rankings, followed by HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel, State Bank of India, TCS, ICICI Bank, Infosys, Bajaj Finance, Larsen & Toubro, and Hindustan Unilever.