PSX remains bullish; KSE-100 Index gains 439 points

KARACHI: The Pakistan stocks witnessed a bullish session, as investors’ sentiment eased after the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) cued short-term relaxation over interest rates, dealers said on Monday.

“Additionally, international oil prices are falling down near $70/bbl, reflecting the comfort in commodities prices; thus, supported the bourse,” an analyst at Pearl Securities said.

“On a global front, the succession of the Pak-Afghan conference is likely to bode well for Pakistan’s economy, if the Afghan issues get resolved.”

The Pakistan Stock Exchange KSE-100 shares Index gained 1 per cent, or 439.27 points, to close at 43,339.95 points. The KSE-30 shares Index gained 1.09 per cent, or 189.19 points, to close at 17,487.33 points.

As many as 343 scrips were active, of which only 248 advanced, 76 declined and 19 remained unchanged. The ready market volumes stood at 238.45 million shares, compared with the turnover of 252.2 million shares in the last trading session.

An analyst at Arif Habib Limited said the index continued its bullish trend, as investors’ confidence boosted from last week’s Open Market Operation (OMO) injection, creating stability in the market.

“Profit-taking occurred in the first trading hour, then the market stayed in the green zone throughout the day. Bullish trend was observed mainly in the cement and steel sectors.”

In the technology sector, TRG Pakistan made the journey north by hitting the circuit, as the company’s board has decided to continue to work towards further maximising the value and capital returns of its proceeds for the company and its shareholders.

Going forward, analysts expect the market to move both ways, as the planned mini-budget is yet to be announced in the last week of the ongoing month.

The companies, which reflected the highest gains included Sanofi Aventis, up Rs39.65 to close at Rs568.35/share; and Lucky Cement, up Rs19.16 to close at Rs693.74/share.

The companies that reflected the most losses included Bata Pakistan, down Rs44.65 to close at Rs2,000/share; and Sapphire Textile, down Rs36.87 to close at Rs852.01/share.

The highest volumes were witnessed in TRG Pakistan with a turnover of 25.67 million shares. The scrip gained Rs7.98 to close at Rs114.41/share; followed by WorldCall Telecom with a turnover of 17.45 million shares. It gained four paisas to close at Rs2.19/share. Byco Petroleum remained the third with a turnover of 13.93 million shares. It shed 22 paisas to finish at Rs6.17/share.

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