Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea shares tumble after Mukesh Ambani announces Reliance Jio’s ambitious plan

Shares of telecom companies Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea slumped on Tuesday after Mukesh Ambani said Monday that Reliance Industries has received strong interest from strategic and financial investors for its telecom and retail businesses. In the early trade on Tuesday, Bharti Airtel shares tumbled nearly 7 per cent to Rs 346.45 per share on BSE, while those of Vodafone Idea plunged about 10 per cent in the intraday trading today. The shares of Bharti Airtel had opened lower on the exchanges after Mukesh Ambani-led RIL conducted its 42nd AGM on Monday.

Ambani in RIL’s AGM said the company will induct global partners in the next few quarters. RIL’s two subsidiaries Reliance Jio and Reliance Retail will also be listed on bourses in the next five years, added Ambani. He also announced the roll-out of Jio Fiber broadband services during the AGM which can be availed by the general public September 5 onwards. “Sceptics used to say that Reliance cannot succeed in consumer businesses. Jio and Reliance Retail have proved them wrong. If these two consumer businesses had been separately listed companies, each would be ranked among the top 10 in India today, in terms of value,” Mukesh Ambani said.

Bharti Airtel posted net losses of Rs 2,866 crore for the first quarter of FY20 on account of an ongoing tariff war with Reliance Jio. In the comparable period of last year, Sunil Mittal’s telecom company had reported a net profit of Rs 97.3 crore and Rs 107.2 crore in the previous quarter. While Vodafone Idea registered a consolidated net loss of Rs 4,873.9 crore during the first quarter of FY20.

On BSE, at 11:18 AM, RIL’s shares were seen trading at Rs 1,286.50 per share, up 10.71 per cent from the previous close. The shares posted their highest intraday gain since February 2017. The stock rally helped RIL in reclaiming Rs 8 lakh crore market capitalisation.

IDEA Cellular Limited