Market watch: Index soars past record high with 622-point gain

Benchmark KSE 100-share Index finishes at 41,546 points


Our Correspondent October 20, 2016
Benchmark KSE 100-share Index finishes at 41,546 points. PHOTO: PPI

KARACHI: Spurred by institutional buying in index-heavy oil and banking stocks, the benchmark-100 index rose to its record high Thursday, crossing the 41,500-point level with ease and registering an increase of 622 points.

Investors were triggered into the bullish zone on the back of news that Sindh Pension Fund has allocated Rs5.75 billion to invest in equities, which prompted heavy buying across the board as the wider market put aside political concerns and planned protests by opposition parties. Stocks opened positive and stayed there with sharp gains as crude oil prices and impressive earnings announcements keeping interest alive.



At close, the Pakistan Stock Exchange’s benchmark KSE 100-share Index recorded a rise of 1.52% or 621.81 points to end at 41,545.95.

Elixir Securities analyst Ali Raza said equities closed with sharp gains on aggressive institutional buying in index names amid reports of expected funds deployment in equities by a state-run pension fund to the tune of $55 million.

“The benchmark KSE-100 index soared by more than 600 points and settled at a fresh record close above 41,500 level while turnover on KSE-100 index recorded was 50% higher than this week’s average,” said Raza.

“Stocks opened gap up and added to gains as the day progressed; oils closed in green tracking overnight gains in global crude while financials ended strong with Habib Bank (HBL, +2.1%) coming under spotlight after it announced earnings that beat consensus.

“The proposed ‘bailout’ package by the government for textile sector’s revival also generated excitement as Nishat Mills (NML, +3.1%) and Nishat Chunian (NCL, +2.8%) both closed higher on heavy volumes.

“Following sharp gains in bluechips, retail investors became aggressive in second-tier names as they dominated volumes chart, said Raza.

JS Global analyst Ahmed Saeed Khan said positivity prevailed as the index closed up 1.5%.

“The rally in the local bourse was led by the oil sector that was fueled by rise in global crude oil prices to a 15-month high after government data showed that US stockpiles declined unexpectedly trimming an overhang of inventories.

“Oil and Gas Development Corporation (+2.26%) and Pakistan Petroleum Limited (+4.56%) were the biggest index movers of the sector, said Khan.



“Similarly a rally was witnessed in the auto sector where Atlas Honda (+2.62%) and Indus Motor (+5.00%) were the biggest movers of the sector.” Trading volumes rose to 562 million shares compared with Wednesday’s tally of 506 million.

Shares of 455 companies were traded. At the end of the day, 325 stocks closed higher, 116 declined while 14 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs18.7 billion.

Bank of Punjab was the volume leader with 68.4 million shares, gaining Rs0.85 to finish at Rs18.30. It was followed by Dost Steel (R) with 49.3 million shares, losing Rs0.03 to close at Rs3.88 and Japan Power with 42.3 million shares, gaining Rs0.70 to close at Rs6.96.

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers of Rs385 million during the trading session, according to data maintained by the National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 21st, 2016.

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