Reliance Share Price Drops 4 Percent, Market Capitalisation Falls Below ₹18 Lakh Crore

Reliance Industries Share Price Declines Over 4% Amid Heavy Selling Pressure

Reliance Industries share price fell by as much as 4.13% to ₹1,295 apiece on the BSE on Monday, weighing heavily on the broader market indices. The sharp decline in the index heavyweight dragged the Nifty 50 lower, with the benchmark index slipping as much as 0.7% during the session.

Reliance Industries, led by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, holds the second-highest weightage in the Nifty 50 at 8.87%, behind HDFC Bank, which has a weight of 10.94%. The sharp correction in Reliance Industries share price also led to a significant erosion in its market capitalisation, with the company's market cap slipping below ₹18 lakh crore and standing at approximately ₹17.65 lakh crore, according to exchange data.

The drop in Reliance share price comes amid the escalating US-Iran war in the Middle East, which continues to disrupt the supply of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz, raising concerns about potential oil shortages. Reliance Industries share price has declined over 8% in the past two weeks, following the government's decision to impose export duties on diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF), raising concerns about potential pressure on the company's refining margins.

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Effective March 26, the government revised fuel levies, reintroducing export duties on diesel and ATF, while keeping petrol exports exempt. A senior official clarified that the reimposed windfall export taxes on diesel and ATF will not apply to Reliance Industries Ltd's SEZ refinery due to judicial rulings, according to PTI.

According to a Citi Research report, the export taxes are equivalent to $36 per barrel on diesel and $50 per barrel on jet fuel. The report also noted that the impact of the export tax on Reliance's refining margins should be largely offset by elevated diesel/jet fuel cracks vs pre-conflict levels.

In a separate note, Jefferies said the reimposed export duty broadly caps diesel/ATF spreads at $20 per barrel for standalone refiners like Reliance.

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The technical outlook for Reliance share price is bearish, with the stock breaking below the key short-term moving average that has been acting as support since the last few months around ₹1,330, noted Rajesh Bhosale, Equity Technical and Derivative Analyst at Angel One. The next support would be around ₹1,250, coinciding with the 200-weekly moving average and 61.8% retracement (golden ratio) of the entire rally seen last year.

At 12:15 PM, Reliance share price was trading 3.88% lower at ₹1,298.50 apiece on the BSE.