Defence stocks up over govt's Rs 1.05 lakh crore procurement drive

Mumbai, July 4 (IANS) Defence stocks were trading in positive territory on Friday, a day after the union government approved the purchase of defence equipment worth Rs 1.05 lakh crore.

Shares of all major public sector defence companies, including BEL, BEML, Hindustan Aeronautics, and Mazagaon Dock Shipbuilder, rose by up to 4.5 per cent during intraday trading.

Mazagaon Dock Shipbuilders shares were up 1.46 per cent at Rs 3,337.80 on NSE. The shipbuilding company's shares opened at Rs 3,320.0 and rose to hit an intra-day high of Rs 3,369.0 during the trading hours.

Bharat Electronics shares started the trade with a decent gap-up at Rs 430.0 against the previous day's closing price of Rs 426.25 on NSE.

The defence stock further rose to hit an intra-day high at Rs 432.40. However, the stock erased most of its gain, trading at Rs 426.50, up 0.59 at around 2:08 pm.

BEML shares jumped over 4.5 per cent in the intra-day trade against the last session's closing price, touching an intra-day high of Rs 4,655.0 on NSE. Last seen, the stock was trading 2.33 per cent up at Rs 4,556.90.

Meanwhile, Hindustan Aeronautics shares rose around 1.5 per cent to Rs 5,020.0 during early trade. At around 2:24 pm, the HAL shares were trading at Rs 4,994.80, up 1.25 per cent against the last session's closing price of Rs 4,931.20.

The rally in defence stocks came after the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, gave its nod to 10 major procurement deals worth Rs 1.05 lakh crore, all under the Buy (Indian–IDDM) category.

Surface-to-air missiles, an Integrated Common Inventory Management System for the Tri-Services, an Electronic Warfare System, and armoured recovery vehicles are among the items that have received Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) approvals.

These acquisitions are intended to "provide higher mobility, effective air defence, better supply chain management, and augment the operational preparedness of the armed forces," according to the Ministry of Defence.

--IANS

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