Auto stocks fall: Maruti Suzuki top loser\, Amara Raja\, Ashok Leyland hit 52-week low

Auto stocks fall: Maruti Suzuki top loser, Amara Raja, Ashok Leyland hit 52-week low

Shares of Maruti Suzuki India tumbled as much as 4.70 per cent in intra-day to Rs 7,204.10 apiece on the BSE, after the auto major said it will hike its car prices from next across various models in January 2019.

Shares of automobile companies continued its losing streak on Thursday with BSE Auto index and Nifty Auto index skidding over 4 per cent in the last three trading session as investors weighed muted November sales and RBI policy announcement.

The BSE Auto index was trading at 19923.34, down by 358.82 points, or by 1.77 per cent, with  Maruti Suzuki India (Rs. 7,257.65,-3.99%) and TVS Motor Company Ltd. (Rs. 535.55,-3.46%) as the top loser in the pack.

Shares of Maruti Suzuki India tumbled as much as 4.70 per cent in intra-day to Rs 7,204.10 apiece on the BSE, after the auto major said it will hike its car prices from next across various models in January 2019. The stock opened lower at Rs 7,467.00 against the previous day closing price of Rs 7,559.55.

On the National Stock Exchange, stocks of company were trading at Rs 7,274.95, down 3.69 per cent.

"The cost of its vehicles has been impacted adversely due to increase in commodity prices and foreign exchange rates, etc. Hence, it has become imperative for the Company to pass on some impact of the above additional cost to customers through a price increase across various models in January 2019," Maruti Suzuki said in a filing to the exchange.

Among others, Amara Raja Batteries, Ashok Leyland, Balkrishna Industries, Bharat Forge and Force Motors have hit their respective 52-week lows on the BSE today.

Index heavyweight Tata Motors continued losing momentum for the third straight session Thursday and was trading down 2.33 per cent Rs 165.25 apiece, after global rating agency S&P Global Ratings lowered the credit rating of automaker and its luxury car unit Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Plc (JLR), raising concerns over low profitability at JLR.

Last week, Moody's Investors Service has changed Tata Motors' rating outlook to negative from stable, citing expectations of weak operating performance of the company's British arm Jaguar Land Rover (JLR). The ratings agency has also affirmed the 'corporate family rating' and the company's senior unsecured instruments ratings at Ba2, which is considered to be speculative grade and subject to substantial credit risk.

Edited by Chitranjan Kumar