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The Railway Budget for 2013-14 saw stocks of large wagon-making companies – Texmaco Rail & Engg and Titagarh Wagons -- dip sharply.
Between 12 noon, when Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal begun his speech, and 2.30 p.m., Texmaco declined by 8 per cent with around 2 lakh shares changing hands on the BSE.
TWL lost around 6 per cent with a traded quantity of about 6 lakh shares on the BSE. But the Cimmco counter moved up 5 per cent till 2 p.m. and then reversed gear. At around 2.30 pm it was down by 3 per cent.
Texmaco closed the day's session with around 12 per cent loss (on NSE 12.05 per cent and on BSE 11.36 per cent ). The combined traded quantity in the counter on both the exchanges was over 14 lakh shares.
Titagarh Wagons stock price slipped over 8 per cent at close on BSE and 9.43 per cent on NSE. Some 28 lakh shares changed hands.
On NSE platform, Cimmco on low volumes (around 1,000) finished up over 6.27 per cent and on BSE, it gained marginally at 0.69 per cent.
According to market observers sentiment has turned sour in the absence of any mention about wagon procurement plans for the coming fiscal. "This is a departure that was witnessed last year too," said a wagon industry insider. The explanatory memorandum to the 2013-14 Railway Budget, however, placed the wagon procurement figure at 16,000, the same as in 2012-13.
Though Railway’s wagon procurement in the last couple of years has been irregular, it deprived Cimmco of orders last fiscal on certain technical grounds. A market insider said now that Cimmco had won a long-drawn legal battle recently, expectations were that it might be difficult to ignore Cimmco in the coming financial year. "We are awaiting the 'pink book', the detailed Budget document for procurement clues," said a Cimmco official.
PTI adds: Share prices of companies that cater to the railway sector also came under pressure on the bourses as Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal delivered his maiden Rail Budget in the Lok Sabha.
By the close on the BSE, Kalindee Rail Nirman had lost 11.62 per cent, Hind Rectifiers 8.82 per cent and Kernex Microsystems 15.13 per cent.
Among others, Stone India tanked 16.21 per cent and BEML 2.8 per cent.
>jayanta.mallick@thehindu.co.in
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