The Karachi Stock Exchange benchmark 100-share index ended 0.25 per cent or 30.99 points lower at 12,242.39.
News that the petroleum ministry had informed oil refineries that the deemed duty protection of 7.5 per cent will be eliminated gradually, kept investors on the sidelines, said JS Global Capital analyst Mujtaba Barakzai.
The government lets refineries charge an extra 7.5 per cent duty in order to sell locally-produced diesel at the same price as the imported diesel. This was imposed to protect refineries against volatility in international oil prices.
Amongst refineries, National Refinery Limited and Attock Refinery Limited both closed at their lower limits.
Following the decline, Pakistan State Oil plummeted 2.5 per cent or Rs7.12 to close at Rs282.89 amid concerns over rising circular debt and its effect on the company’s financial health, pushing investors to the sidelines, according to analysts.
Turnover fell to a 10-week low of 78.35 million shares compared with 132.73 million shares traded on Tuesday.
Shares of 390 companies were traded on Wednesday. At the end of the day, 134 stocks closed higher, 238 declined and 18 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs4.06 billion.
Lotte Pakistan PTA was the volume leader with 15.9 million shares, gaining Rs0.11 to finish at Rs15.26. It was followed by Fauji Fertiliser Bin Qasim Limited with 5.1 million shares, losing Rs0.4 to close at Rs40.23 and Azgard Nine Limited with 3.7 million shares, losing Rs0.21 to close at Rs10.75.
Nestle contributes 55% to index rise
The mantle in January was passed on from the index heavyweight Oil and Gas Development Company to the thinly traded Nestle Pakistan which contributed 55 per cent of the 337-point rise in the KSE index, according to KASB Securities.
The local bourse started the year by outperforming peers and posted 2.8 per cent return during January, says a KASB research note.
While the result season is likely to drive near-term market performance, going forward the market is likely to take a cue from the re-introduction of a leverage product for which rules have reportedly been cleared by the law ministry and negotiations between political parties and the IMF regarding pending reforms and subsequent tranches.
Volumes stood at a daily average of $93 million in January, highest in the last twelve months.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 3rd, 2011.
COMMENTS (1)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ