Amid speculation that it lost up to $5 billion in crude oil futures trade, Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries [Get Quote] said on Friday its hedging transactions are 'conservative' in approach.

Terming as 'malicious propaganda' the reports about the company having suffered huge losses in crude oil hedging, RIL said it was in the business of refining and its efforts were always towards maximising the gross refining margins.

"We engage in hedging transactions to protect our refining margins. . . . (but) as a prudent business philosophy, we do not take speculative positions in either crude oil or any other commodities," an RIL spokesperson said in a statement.

"The consistently superior financial performance of our refinery business reflects our conservative hedging practices," the spokesperson further said in the statement.

There have been reports that RIL's mark-to-market losses on oil prices hedges has run into billions of dollars after its bets on crude futures went wrong last year, when prices first surged to a high of over 147 dollars and then plunged to below $40 a barrel.

RIL stock was trading 6.6 per cent lower in morning trade at Rs 1,118 per share.