Combined market cap on BSE tops $1 trillion

Mumbai: The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) has crossed the $1 trillion mark in terms of market capitalisation of all the companies listed on the bourse. The combined market value of all the firms listed on BSE rose to Rs40,52,121.32 crore (slightly over $1,000 billion), based on an exchange rate of Rs40.51 for one US dollar.

This represents a sharp gain of about 60 per cent in the combined market cap of all BSE listed firms from $625 billion a year ago. However, the gain is relatively lower in rupee terms -- the market cap has gained just 42 per cent in the same period from about Rs28,40,000 crore a year ago.

In 2007 so far, the market cap has gained 23 per cent in dollar terms from $812 billion at the end of last year. In rupee terms, it has gained 12 per cent from Rs36,24,000 crore at 2006-end.

The country''s 30 top blue-chip firms, which make the benchmark index Sensex, contribute about 47 per cent of the total market cap.

The collective investor wealth in the 30 Sensex firms rose to Rs18,82,611.83 crore (about $465 billion). It represents a sharp gain of nearly 59 per cent from $293 billion a year ago and a jump of nearly 17 per cent from $398 billion at 2006-end.

Among the top blue-chip firms, the country''s most valued firm Reliance Industries has added a whopping $30 billion to the investors'' wealth, taking its market value to $59 billion, from about $20 billion a year ago.