Shares of oil companies fall after reduction in fuel prices

Shares of oil marketing companies Friday fell over 25 per cent as the government announced Rs 2.50 per litre cut in petrol and diesel prices.

On the BSE, shares of Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) tanked 25.18 per cent to end at Rs 165.05 and Bharat Petroleum Corp eased by 21.11 per cent to Rs 265.35.

Besides, Indian Oil Corp (IOC) tumbled 16.19 per cent to Rs 118.05 and Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) lost 15.93 per cent to close at Rs 146.95.

ONGC was also the biggest loser on the 30-share index.

Intra-day, the shares of ONGC, HPCL, IOC and BPCL touched their 52-week low on the BSE.

Similarly, on the NSE all touched their 52-week low during intra-day.

The government Thursday announced Rs 2.50 per litre cut in petrol and diesel prices after it reduced excise duty by Rs 1.50 a litre and asked oil companies to absorb another rupee.

The move to ask state-owned oil firms, who were given pricing freedom, to absorb rupee per litre was seen as a return of government control over pricing, leading to stocks of IOC, BPCL and HPCL tanking.

Market experts said the fuel price cut would have negative implications for upstream public sector companies.

"The government’s decision to curtail marketing margins on auto fuels by Rs 1/litre brings to fore the earnings uncertainty for oil PSUs, associated with an environment of higher crude prices amid the government’s socio-economic compulsions," Kotak Institutional Equities said in a research note.

(With inputs from agencies.)