The Hindu Business Line : Harig Crankshaft zooms 500% in 13 trading sessions

AT a time when most stocks are witnessing fall in price, the price of loss-making auto ancillary company Harig Crankshaft is on the rise. More interestingly, the price has increased from Rs 3 (at the end May) to Rs 18 levels, a rise of 500 per cent in just 13 trading sessions on the BSE.

The stock is traded in the Z category of the exchange, which means that the company is not complying with the exchange's listing agreement.

With rise in the stock price, the volume in the counter has also increased from a few hundred shares to over 10,000 shares.

Trading in the stock started in the last week of May after more than three years. Company officials were not available for comment. Most of the brokers are clueless on the stock price movement.

"It is difficult to know what is happening in the company. It could be either manipulation in the stock or some restructuring in the company," said a dealer .

The financial performance of the company is not encouraging either. For the fiscal ended March 2004, it reported a net loss of Rs 51.77 crore on net sales of Rs 20.12 crore.

Net loss more than the sales is due to the huge interest payment of Rs 52 crore. Net loss was Rs 38.3 crore for FY ended March 2003 on net sales of Rs 17.3 crore.