Shares of Reliance Industries fell by over 4 per cent on Tuesday as investor concerns mounted over rising competition in the retail sector and uncertainty around the company’s crude oil sourcing, including its recent halt of Russian oil supplies, triggering its sharpest fall since June 2024.
The stock of the Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate closed 4.5% lower, wiping out more than $10 billion in market capitalisation. Reliance's fall also dragged benchmark indices lower, given its heavy weightage, with the Sensex and Nifty ending the session in the red.
Investor anxiety was fuelled by fresh signals of stress in the retail sector.
Fast-fashion retailer Trent Ltd. reported a 15% year-on-year drop in average revenue per square foot in the December quarter, pointing to a tougher operating environment.
Citigroup said intensifying competition was eroding the market share of incumbents, a comment that weighed on sentiment around Reliance’s own retail business.
Reliance Retail is widely seen as one of the key drivers of the group's valuation. ICICI Securities had valued the retail business at over $103 billion in October, roughly half of Reliance’s total market capitalisation at the time.
Although the retail arm is closely held, weak commentary around peers was viewed by investors as a broader sector risk that could hurt India’s largest retailer.
Reliance Industries Ltd, the operator of the world's largest single site oil refining complex and till recently India's biggest buyer of Russian oil, on Tuesday said it has not received any Russian barrels in almost three weeks and none are expected in January.
On November 20, 2025, Reliance had said it has halted the use of Russian crude at its export-only refinery in Jamnagar, Gujarat, as the company moves to comply with the European Union sanctions.
"Reliance Industries' Jamangar refinery has not received any cargo of Russian oil at its refinery in the past three weeks approx. and is not expecting any Russian crude oil deliveries in January," the company said in a statement.
The selloff was compounded by profit booking. Reliance shares had surged about 29% in 2025, significantly outperforming the NSE Nifty 50, which gained around 11%.
That rally was driven by improving prospects in the energy business, aided by higher refining margins and expectations of benefits from China’s anti-involution policy.
Looking ahead, Morgan Stanley sees several growth catalysts in 2026, including a potential initial public offering of Jio Platforms, likely increases in telecom tariffs and further upside to refining margins amid benign oil prices.
Still, analysts caution that uncertainties around potential US tariffs on India, patchy recovery in consumer demand and elevated valuations - with the stock trading at over 23 times forward earnings - could continue to cap gains.
The weakness in Reliance also weighed on other energy stocks, with state-run refiners Bharat Petroleum Corp and Hindustan Petroleum Corp slipping about 2 per cent each.
On Tuesday, Reliance shares ended at ₹1,507.70 on the BSE and ₹1,507.60 on the NSE, after hitting intraday lows of over 5%. The stock had touched a record high of ₹1,611.20 in the previous session.
At 10 am on Wednesday, the stock is trading 0.36 per cent up at ₹1,513.
Curated by Shiv Shakti Mishra
