UP elections: Biggest gainers and losers in market this morning

Bucking a weak market trend, shares of Anil Amabani-owned Reliance Group and sugar companies surged in morning trade on hopes of a likely Samajwadi win in Uttar Pradesh.

In the Uttar Pradesh, Samajwadi Party is the leading party with 164 seats while Mayawati’s BSP is at second spot with just 97 seats, followed by BJP at 63 seats, while Congress is still at the last spot.

The market’s behaviour has perplexed experts who analyse that possibly it is still expecting a SP-Congress alliance in UP. Reliance Infrastructure and Reliance Power, part of the Reliance Group, gained 5.5 percent and 5 percent, respectively, after exit polls predicted the Samajwadi Party will emerge as the state’s single largest party. Markets expect the company to increase its focus on setting up power plants in the state, and the reliance group’s exposure to the state in the form of infrastructure projects and power projects could also go up.

As Firstpost noted earlier the proximity of Anil Ambani to the party is well known. He was a Rajya Sabha MP and elected with the help of party. The group had been the official choice under SP rule for setting up power plants in the state. The heir apparent of SP, Akhilesh Yadav, has said that one of his focus area will be power sector reforms.

Shares of UP-based sugar companies have also gained 1.5 percent to 2 percent on hopes of a SP win in Uttar Pradesh. During the earlier SP tenure, sugarcane procurement prices rose by only 25 percent while they doubled during the BSP regime. This could come under control and this new environment could see more investments by these companies in the state.

The Manoj Gaur-led Jaiprakash Associates fell almost 6 percent anticipating an unfavourable business environment for the group as it is said to have close ties with the BSP regime, which is likely to lose the UP elections this time.