Reliance Retail to instill competition in retail sector

Mumbai, June 27: The long awaited Reliance Industries plan to enter the retail sector has finally been fulfilled.

Mr Mukesh Ambani who has envisioned a retail revolution in the country, at the 32nd AGM said,''Organised retailing will be the overarching theme of the expansion and growth of Reliance in the near-term future.'' The Rs 25000 crore project is sure to make the retail segment highly competitive, said trader and analyst Mr Madhukar Sheth.

Hindustan Lever Limited (HLL) and Indian Tobacco Company (ITC) are most likely to suffer at the hands of Reliance Retail Ltd. ITC has not done anything new in the past five years, hence Reliances' presence will force them to think on their feet and be more innovative, Mr Sheth added.

However, other experts are sceptical of short term gains for Reliance, when the markets are bearish, they feel it may affect the price to earning ratio, which is likely to improve only in the long run.

Earlier today, the reliance shares spurted on the good news of Reliance's venture in the retail sector. Reliance shares opened at 981.20 and touched the high of 1010. It is currently trading at 988.00 the total volume of shares traded were 44,71,852.

UNI