Benchmark KSE-100 index rises 76.47 points.
KARACHI: The benchmark-100 index closed higher on the last trading session of the week, propelled in the black on the back of interest in the cement sector.
While the wider market saw a bearish sentiment with lower volume and value, cement stocks garnered investor attention.
At close on Friday, the Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 Index rose 0.23% or 76.47 points to end at 32,876.55.
Elixir Securities, in its report, stated Pakistan equities closed marginally positive after late-session buying in cements which pushed the benchmark KSE-100 index to settle near 32,900.
“Stocks opened sideways tracking mixed regional markets and struggled to find a clear direction, while the wider market witnessed muted activity as participants remained in the side-lines on the last day of the rollover week,” said analyst Ali Raza.
“The index hovered near previous day’s close in the morning session, however, reported foreign buying in cements namely Dera Ghazi Khan Cement (DGKC +3.07%) and Maple Leaf Cement (MLCF +4.99%) led KSE-100 index to test 32,900 intra-day and finish in the green.
“Meanwhile, National Bank of Pakistan (NBP -2.24%) traded lower after morning news of its New York branch coming under the regulator’s radar on non-compliance hurt investors’ sentiments,” Raza added.
Meanwhile, JS Global Analyst Ahmed Saeed Khan said sentiments remained dull on the last day of the rollover week, in absence of any major triggers.
“Rally was witnessed in the cement sector during the second half as speculation rose that dispatch numbers will clock in about 20%-25% higher year-on-year for the month of March, which are due to be announced over the weekend,” said Khan.
“Mixed sentiment prevailed in the oil sector, as global crude oil closed above $40 per barrel (Brent).
“Pakistan Refinery Limited, Pakistan Petroleum and Pakistan State Oil ended in the green whereas other major players closed marginally in the red zone.”
“Moving forward, we expect positivity to persist in the market. Cement dispatch numbers would be the major trigger in the upcoming week,” Khan added.
Trade volumes rose to 109 million shares compared with Thursday’s tally of 86 million shares.
Shares of 318 companies were traded on Friday. At the end of the day, 142 stocks closed higher, 148 declined while 28 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs5.0 billion.
Sui North Gas was the volume leader with 11.3 million shares, gaining Rs0.29 to finish at Rs25.43. It was followed by Dewan Motors with 7.9 million shares, losing Rs0.61 to close at Rs9.28 and TRG Pakistan with 5.7 million shares, losing Rs0.29 to close at Rs27.06.
Foreign institutional investors were net sellers of Rs78 million during the trade session, according to data maintained by the National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 26th, 2016.
Like Business on Facebook, follow @TribuneBiz on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ