Stocks fall almost one percent on profit-taking

Stocks shed almost one percent on Monday as investors preferred to take profit in blue-chip shares, while restraining from taking fresh positions because of the negatives heralded in the federal budget last week, dealers said  

Analyst Ahsan Mehanti at Arif Habib Limited said stocks closed bearish amid institutional profit-taking after the announcement of the federal budget.

“Support was witnessed in selected oil stocks amid surge in global crude prices,” Mehanti said. “However, flat rates of capital gain tax, continuation of super tax on corporate sector, reduction of subsidies in fertiliser sector, additional tax levies on steel and cement sectors played a catalytic role in bearish close.”

The KSE 100-share Index of Pakistan Stock Exchange lost 0.95 percent or 497.97 points to close at 52,138.90 points. KSE 30-share Index shed 1.09 percent or 305.35 points to end at 27,641.29 points. As many as 375 shares were active; of which 105 increased, 258 decreased and 12 remained unchanged.

The ready market volumes stood at 203.079 million shares as compared to 431.773 million shares a day earlier.

“As expected, the KSE 100 index shed 498 points in the first session post-budget as investors weighed implications of single-slab capital gains tax and higher tax on dividends along with other measures,” said Adnan Sami, an analyst at Topline Securities.

Laggards were Habib Bank (down 2.2 percent), Lucky Cement (decreasing 2.8 percent), United Bank (dropping 2.6 percent), Dawood Hercules (dipping 2.7 percent) and Pak Elektron (declining 3.9 percent), with a negative contribution of 273 points. 

Oil and Gas Development (up 0.8 percent), Sui Northern Gas (rising 1.6 percent), Mari Petroleum (increasing 1.6 percent), Hub Power (inching up 0.5 percent and Pak Suzuki (edging up 1.4 percent) supported the index by collectively adding 62 points to the Index.

The advent of Ramzan has reduced regular trading hours, while investor participation generally waned in the month of abstinence.

Going forward, analysts believe activity in Morgan Stanley Capital International’s names will pick up given their inclusion in the Emerging Markets Index is just a couple of days away.

Companies, reflecting highest gains, included Rafhan Maize up Rs84.34 to close at Rs7,400.67/share and Mari Petroleum that rose Rs26.68 to end at Rs1714.11/share.

Companies, with most losses, included Nestle Pakistan down Rs199.67 to end at Rs10,000/share and Wyeth Pakistan that fell Rs110.26 to close at Rs2,426.57/share.

Highest volumes were witnessed in Power Cement (R) with a turnover of 23.493 million shares. The scrip inched down four paisas to close at Rs2.79/share. Aisha steel was the second with a turnover of 11.89 million shares. It shed 39 paisas to end at Rs25.39/share. Bank of Punjab (R) was the third with a turnover of 10.57 million shares. It fell two paisas to finish at Rs1.78/share.