The 65 GDRs lost 0.28 per cent for the week ended August 28 while the underlying shares declined by 0.05 per cent. The GDR index premium rose by 13.78 per cent to 7.51 per cent while the GDRs price to earnings multiple rose by 0.75 per cent to 13.72. The GDRs of telecom sector were the major gainers which appreciated by 3.68 per cent followed further by steel which appreciated by 3.57 per cent and the hotel sector that appreciated by 2.11 per cent. Compared to the GDR market, the sector which was a major gainer in the underlying shares was the cement sector that gained by 3.74 per cent followed by telecom at 3.49 per cent and fertilisers at 1.66 per cent.

The top three gainers in the GDR market were Arvind Mills which saw an appreciation of 21.05 per cent, Indian Hotels which saw an appreciation of 10.07 per cent and Videocon International which appreciated by 8.70 per cent. The Bombay Dyeing, Raymond Woollen and the Reliance GDRs were the top losers in the GDR market.

A study done by the Skindia GDR on the pharmaceutical sector shows that the pharma sector which was the star performer in the GDRs in the year 1997 seems to have run out of steam. As against an average gain of 64.94 per cent in the previous year, it has lost 8.33 per cent in the first eight months this year. The study says that the fall in this sector is much less as compared to the fall in the Skindia GDR Index which fell by 37.62 per cent during the corresponding eight-month period. The pharmaceutical sector study shows that the fall in the sector was mainly due to Ranbaxy Labs which fell by 39.25 per cent.