Stocks lose 76 points, close below 78k mark amid economic uncertainty

KARACHI: Stocks could not sustain above the 78k mark and closed lower on Wednesday amid a mixed trend, as economic uncertainty persisted.

The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 share index decreased by 76.85 points or 0.10 per cent to 77,114.49 points against 77,191.34 points recorded in the last session. The highest index of the day remained at 77,800.04 points while the lowest level was recorded at 77,086.82 points.

Analyst Ahsan Mehanti at Arif Habib Corp said, “Stocks closed lower on economic uncertainty.”He said that a falling rupee, delays on privatization of SOEs, concerns for the $15 billion unsettled China IPP debt, and falling banking spreads played a catalyst role in the bearish close.

The KSE-30 index decreased by 55.38 points or 0.22 per cent to 24,847.16 points against 24,902.54 points.Traded shares dropped by 153 million shares to 447.53 million shares from 600.9 million shares. The trading value increased to Rs18.39 billion from Rs17.13 billion. Market capital expanded to Rs10.3 trillion against Rs10.29 trillion. Of 440 companies active in the session, 231 closed in green, 160 in red and 49 remained unchanged.

Ali Najib, an analyst at Topline Securities, said equities moved in both directions as bullish and bearish forces confronted throughout the session to take the helm at the PSX. However, bears emerged as a winner as the KSE 100 index called the day at 77,115 levels (-77 points; down 0.10 per cent).

Investors switched between selective stocks of the power, energy, fertilizer, auto, tech and cement sectors. BAHL, EFERT, FFC, UBL & PPL lost 263 points, cumulatively. On the flip side, PPL, HBL and Engro collectively added 121 points as they witnessed rejuvenated buying interest.

The highest increase was recorded in Unilever Pakistan Foods Limited shares, which rose by Rs114.06 to Rs17,799.06 per share, followed by Exide Pakistan Limited, which increased by Rs89.65 to Rs986.17 per share. A significant decline was noted in Nestle Pakistan Limited, which fell by Rs85.22 to Rs6,911.99 per share; Reliance Cotton Spinning Mills Limited followed it, which closed lower by Rs60.38 to Rs590.45 per share.

Brokerage Arif Habib Ltd stated that the KSE-100 index struggled to reclaim the crucial 78,000-point level, reaching a high of the day at 77,800 points.

MCB reported its 2QCY24 earnings per share (EPS) at Rs14.17, marking a 14 per cent year-on-year increase. For the first half of CY24, EPS stood at Rs29.31, up 21 per cent YoY. The bank announced a dividend per share (DPS) of Rs9, bringing the total DPS for 1HCY24 to Rs18/share. The rise in profitability is attributed to a significant increase in non-interest income and a decline in provisioning.

Refineries experienced renewed momentum, with NRL gaining 4.86 per cent and PRL up by 4.31 per cent. Additionally, tech stock OCTOPUS surged by 10 per cent.Despite these gains, the KSE-100 index faces downside risk below the 78,000-point mark, indicating potential volatility in the near term.

Kohinoor Spinning remained the volume leader with 70.04 million shares which closed lower by 26 paisas to Rs5.84 per share. Power Cement followed it with 28.783 million shares, which closed higher by 8 paisas to Rs4.98 per share.

Other significant turnover stocks included Pak Int Bulk, Pak Refinery, Silk Bank Ltd, WorldCall Telecom, Cnergyico PK, Hascol Petrol, Flying Cement and Air Link Commun. In the futures market, 344 companies recorded trading, of which 172 increased, 154 decreased and 18 remained unchanged.