KARACHI, (Ind:desk): Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) extended its bearish spree for the third session in a row on Thursday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index losing 444.90 points (-0.63 percent) to close at 70,657.64 points.
The Monetary Policy Committee of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) kept the key interest rate unchanged at 22 percent for the seventh straight meeting on Monday last. The key policy rate has remained unchanged at 22 percent since June 2023. The traders reassessed the policy path going forward after the central bank’s decision.
As per market gurus, the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) release of the $1.1-billion loan tranche failed to excite investors as they were fixated on the unchanged policy rate by the MPC in its meeting.
Earlier, the market opened on a sharp positive note as strong buying was witnessed in the initial minutes of the session. However, the selling spree soon took hold of the market and pushed the index below 71,000. Selling pressure was witnessed among all key sectors.
The benchmark index traded in a range of 730.71 points, showing an intraday high of 71,292.83 points and an intraday low of 70,562.12 points. Among other indices, the KSE All Share Index lost 403.92 points (-0.88 percent) to close at 46,150.31 points. Similarly, the KMI All Share Islamic Index shed 223.10 points (-0.68 percent) to close at 33,049.28 points.
Total volumes traded for the KSE-100 Index remained 225.62 million shares, while the overall market volumes remained 437 million shares. Among scrips, KEL topped the volumes with 30.1 million shares, followed by FFBL WTL (25.12 million) and BOP (20.17 million). Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes included KEL, WTL, BOP, PIAA, and FABL, which formed over 24 percent of total volumes.
A total of 363 companies traded shares in the stock exchange, out of which shares of 101 closed up, shares of 234 companies closed down while shares of 28 companies remained unchanged. A total of 99 companies traded shares in the KSE-100 Index, out of which share prices of 30 companies closed up, 63 companies closed down and six remained unchanged. The number of total trades remained 213,428, while the value traded was recorded at Rs19.02 billion.
In terms of rupee, SFL remained the top gainer with an increase of Rs56.42 (+3.96 percent) per share, closing at Rs1,479.75. The runner-up remained KHTC, the share price of which climbed up by Rs20.25 (+7.5 percent) to Rs290.29. UPFL remained the top loser with a decrease of Rs717.85 (-3.59 percent) per share, closing at Rs19,282.15, followed by HCL, the share price of which fell by Rs86.15 (-7.5 percent) to close at Rs1,062.97 per share.
The major sectors taking the index towards south remained fertilizer (170 points), technology and communication (118 points), commercial banks (44 points), pharmaceuticals (30 points), refinery (22 points), oil & gas marketing companies (19 points), food and personal care products (17 points), paper and board (13 points), oil & gas exploration companies (12 points), and chemicals (11 points).
Major companies depriving the index of points remained TRG (54 points), EFERT (51 points), FFC (50 points), ENGRO (46 points), SYS (41 points), MARI (26 points), UBL (25 points), OGDC and MEBL (22 points each), and PSO (20 points).
The major sectors taking the index towards north remained textile composite (27 points), cement (20 points), power and distribution companies (17 points), cable & electrical goods (9 points), investment banks/investment companies/ securities companies (7 points), and insurance (5 points).
Major companies adding points to the index remained BAFL (45 points), PPL (36 points), ILP (25 points), HUBC (21 points), FCCL (16 points), DGKC (15 points), BAHL (14 points), DAWH (10 points), PAEL (9 points), and MLCF (6 points)
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