India's Asian Paints slips premarket as antitrust watchdog orders probe

Asian Paints

02/07/2025 04:45

** Shares of India's Asian Paints ASPN.NS down 1.24% in pre-open trade

** Competition Commission of India on Tuesday found India's largest paintmaker in violation of competition laws and ordered a probe

** Asian Paints abused its dominant market position by offering dealers incentives such as foreign travel in exchange for exclusivity, coerced landlords and raw material suppliers to refrain from engaging with rival Birla Opus - CCI order

** Birla Opus is housed under Grasim Industries GRAS.NS, led by Indian billionaire Kumar Mangalam Birla

** GRAS up 0.8% in pre-open trade

** Reviewing CCI order, will take appropriate legal recourse - Asian Paints

** CLSA says it believes complaint is reflective of increased competitive activity and will increase scrutiny on the responses made by incumbents to new entrants

** If final order is in favour of Grasim, and Asian Paints is asked to mend its manner of operating, it could lower entry barriers for challengers - Investec

** CLSA maintains "underperform" on ASPN, while Investec has "sell"; stock on an avg rated "sell" - data compiled by LSEG

** Stock up 4%, per last close

 (Reporting by Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru)

 ((Hritam.Mukherjee@thomsonreuters.com;))