Stocks drifted both ways on Friday to post half-hearted gains with no new buying incentives to buy as investors await inflows amid dwindling foreign exchange reserves of the country, traders said.
The KSE-100 Shares Index closed higher by 114.81 points or 0.28 percent to 41,128.67 points after touching a day high of 41,135.80 and a low of 40,755.33 points.
Analyst Ahsan Mehanti at Arif Habib Corp said bullish activity was led by selected scripts as investors weighed strong rupee recovery. “A surge in global crude oil prices, speculations over likely support receipts from World Bank and Asian Development Bank for flood relief, and expectations of exit from FATF grey list next month kept the index ticking upwards,” Mehanti added.
The KSE-30 index also climbed by 24.61 points or 0.16 percent to 15,336.86 points compared with 15,312.25 points recorded in the last session.
Traded shares increased by 78 million shares to 205.699 million shares from 127.449 million shares. The trading value jumped to Rs9.499 billion from Rs5.518 billion. Market capital expanded to Rs6.782 trillion from Rs6.760 trillion. Out of 324 companies active in the session, 145 closed in the green, 154 fell, and 25 ended unchanged.
Nabeel Haroon, an analyst at Topline Securities, said it was a range-bound session and stocks traded between an intraday high of 115 points and a low of -260 points to finally close at 41,129 level, up 0.28 percent.
A major contribution to the index came from TRG, DAWH, SYS, MARI & UBL, as they cumulatively contributed 153 points to the index. On the flip side HBL, LUCK, PSO, KAPCO, and FCCL lost value to weigh down on the index by -149 points.
HBL closed on its lower circuit for a second consecutive day after news that a Judge in the US in a legal case has ruled against them to determine secondary liability in the terrorism financing charges.
Bata (Pakistan) was the best gainer of the day, rising Rs106 to Rs2,395 per share, followed by Sanofi-Aventis, up Rs49 to Rs1,198 per share.
A significant decline was noted in shares of Siemens Pakistan, which fell by R44.99 to Rs700.01 per share, followed by Bhanero Textile, down Rs35.01 to Rs1,125 per share.
Arif Habib Ltd said the market remained under pressure all day long as investors participated left and right.
“The PSX remained sluggish during the first half but got active in the second trading session. Investors maintained a strategic distance due to political and economic instability; however, due to rollover week, hefty volumes were witnessed in the futures contracts that led the index close in the green,” it reported.
Sectors contributing to the performance included technology (+80.4 points), E&Ps (+35.6 points), fertiliser (+24.4 points), investment banks (+20.9 points) and tobacco (+13.0 points).
TRG Pak Ltd remained the volume leader with 30.193 million shares. It rose by Rs5.94 to Rs128.86 per share. It was followed by TPL Properties with 18.654 million shares that closed lower by 2 paisas to Rs20.84 per share.
Other stocks that recorded significant turnover included K-Electric Ltd., Pak International Bulk, Cnergyico PK, WorldCall Telecom, Pak Elektron, Fauji Foods Ltd, Telecard Limited, and Fauji Cement.
Turnover in the future contracts increased to 273.190 million shares from 152.887 million shares.