KSE-100 loses 215 points amid weak economic outlook

KARACHI: Stocks continued volatile activity on the first day of the week on Monday where the KSE-100 index witnessed a decline of 215 points as investors opted for profit-taking amid a weak economic outlook.

The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 share index decreased by 214.97 points or 0.28 per cent to 77,830.34 points against 78,045.31 points recorded in the last session. The highest index of the day remained at 78,382.05 points while the lowest level was recorded at 77,566.62 points.

Analyst Ahsan Mehanti at Arif Habib Corp said, “Stocks closed under pressure on a weak economic outlook.”He said political noise, uncertainty over the IMF’s approval on power subsidies in Punjab, economic uncertainty amid unsettled IPPs dues, tax collection shortfalls and surging government debt played a catalyst role in the bearish close.

The KSE-30 index decreased by 96.22 points or 0.39 per cent to 24,876.99 points against 24,973.21 points.Traded shares decreased by 129 million shares to 471.749 million shares from 600.719 million shares. The trading value dropped to Rs16.92 billion from Rs21.07 billion. Market capital narrowed to Rs10.34 trillion against Rs10.4 trillion. Of 441 companies active in the session, 115 closed in green, 275 in red and 51 remained unchanged.

Maaz Mulla, an analyst at Topline Securities, said equities experienced a mixed trading session as bullish and bearish forces wrestled for control throughout the day. Ultimately, the bears claimed victory, with the KSE-100 index closing at 77,830, down 214 points (-0.28 percent).

The session began on a positive note but soon saw profit-taking by investors, pushing the index into negative territory. The benchmark index hit an intraday low of 77,566 (-478 points).

During the day, BAHL, FFC, HUBC, PPL, and SRVI collectively added 173 points to the index. Profit-taking in MARI, MTL, LUCK, and MCB erased 194 points.

The highest increase was recorded in Hoechst Pakistan Limited shares, which rose by Rs101.77 to Rs1,762.06 per share, followed by Ismail Industries Limited, which increased by Rs59.53 to Rs1,599 per share. A significant decline was noted in Unilever Pakistan Foods Limited, which fell by Rs436.21 to Rs17,523.6 per share, Mari Petroleum Company Limited followed it, which closed lower by Rs97.9 to Rs3,288.28 per share.

Brokerage Arif Habib Ltd stated that the KSE-100 index started the week with continued volatility around the 78k level, closing down -0.28 per cent day-on-day.

Meanwhile, BAFL has signalled its openness to further acquisitions to fuel growth, with negotiations in the final stages to acquire Saudi National Bank’s majority stake in Samba Bank Limited (SBL PA).

As the KSE-100 continues to oscillate around the 78k level, the cement sector remains in focus for the week, with expectations that the sector needs to build on Friday’s momentum to drive the index toward 79k and end the ongoing market choppiness.

Kohinoor Spinning remained the volume leader with 134.856 million shares which closed lower by Rs1.01 to Rs9.27 per share. Yousuf Weaving followed it with 43.550 million shares, which closed lower by 98 paisas to Rs5.89 per share.

Other significant turnover stocks included Flying Cement, WorldCall Telecom, Roshan Packages, Air Link Commun, Hascol Petrol, Hub Power Co, Soneri Bank Ltd and Agritech Limited. In the futures market, 323 companies recorded trading, of which 73 increased, 246 decreased and 4 remained unchanged.