DHL Express is planning to reduce its stake in Blue Dart Express in order to become complaint with the free float guidelines set by India's capital market regulator.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) mandates a minimum public shareholding of 25 per cent and thus DHL Express will have to sell stake to bring its stake down. DHL Express currently holds about 81 per cent stake in Blue Dart Express.

SEBI has set a deadline for complying with the rule of June 2013 and investors were holding the view that most global firms would delist their firms in the country instead of diluting their stakes. The indication from DHL Express that it will reduce its stake in Blue Dart Express thus resulted in a fall in the value of shares of Blue Dart Express.

Analysts said that many believe that global businesses would not consider lowering their stakes in Indian businesses because they want independence in decision making and do not wish to dilute their control over the units. However, the latest move by the courier major surprised the market.

The shares of Blue Dart Express fell 11 per cent and were trading at Rs. 1,710.95 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).