Market Watch: Stocks dip, taking cue from global markets

Benchmark KSE-100 index drops 194 points.


Our Correspondent February 04, 2014
KSE benchmark 100-share index dropped 0.72% or 194.66 points to end at 26,751.45. PHOTO: NNI/FILE

KARACHI: The Karachi bourse finally reacted to the panic in global markets on Tuesday as an early morning slide of over 1% on relatively low volumes pushed the index to test the 26,660 level.

The Karachi Stock Exchange’s (KSE) benchmark 100-share index dropped 0.72% or 194.66 points to end at 26,751.45.

“Overall, the top 10 emerged from second and third-tier stocks with Jahangir Siddiqui (JSCL +6.7%) topped the volume charts with a hefty 60.6 million shares,” said Muhammad Sibtain Mustafa of Elixir Securities.

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“Early pressure on cement stocks eased on late buying by institutions as news about allocation to the Public Sector Development Programme created interest at lower levels.”

Pakistan State Oil (PSO +0.9%) traded against the broader market after reports about a proposal being sent to the Economic Coordination Committee for deregulating the oil marketing companies’ (OMCs) margins. If approved, it will likely allow the OMCs to charge different zonal prices across the country and can improve profitability, Mustafa added.

Meanwhile, Mujtaba Barakzai, analyst at JS Global, said OMCs were in the limelight due to the news regarding deregulation of petrol prices. As a result, PSO closed in the green with a gain of 0.9%.

Overall, profit-taking was recorded due to the national holiday on account of Kashmir Day on Wednesday, he said.

Trade volumes were slightly higher at 300 million shares compared with Monday’s tally of 292 million.

Shares of 383 companies were traded. At the end of the day, 116 stocks closed higher, 252 declined and 15 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs8.6 billion.

Jahangir Siddiqui and Company was the volume leader with 60.6 million shares, gaining Rs0.83 to finish at Rs13.09. It was followed by Azgard Nine with 24.1 million shares, losing Rs0.28 to close at Rs9.46 and Byco Petroleum with 18.6 million shares, gaining Rs0.65 to close at Rs10.66.

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Foreign institutional investors were net buyers of Rs102 million worth of shares, according to data compiled by the National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 5th, 2014.

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