Market watch: Index ends negative, but manages to stay over 49,000

Benchmark KSE 100-share Index falls 0.11%

KARACHI: The index saw a see-saw ride once again as a positive open was followed by an over 300-point fall during the afternoon session with the index barely managing to sustain its level over the 49,000-point mark.

At close on Friday, the Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE 100-share Index finished with a fall of 0.11% or 54.27 to end at 49,007.99.

Market watch: KSE-100 plunges 446.59 points to finish below 49,000

Elixir Securities analyst Ali Raza said equities closed marginally negative after trading in a narrow range for most part of the day before slipping towards 49,000 near the day's close.

“Trading activity was focused in mid- and small-cap speculative plays while index names generated limited interest as institutional investors remained highly selective,” said Raza.

“On leaders board, Bank Alfalah (BAFL, -5%) contributed most to losses with stock hitting the lower price limit as the bank completely skipped dividend and disappointing investors.”

“Nishat Chunian (NCL, -5%) closed at its lower price limit on no dividend announcement.

“Notably, Sui Northern Gas Pipeline (SNGP,+5%) hit its second consecutive upper lock with locals reportedly increasing holding on company's future outlook,” said Raza.

“Pakistan Oilfields (POL ,-1.8%) closed in the red as positive announcement of hydrocarbon discovery to the tune of 288 barrels per day was likely countered by mid-day declines in global crude.”

Market watch: KSE-100 recovers from 500-point fall to end positive

JS Global analyst Nabeel Haroon said the market opened on a positive note and rallied to make an intraday high of +212 points.

“This positivity prevailed in the market for most part of the day. However, pressure was witnessed during the 11th hour as the index declined to close (-0.11%) lower than its previous day’s close.”

Haroon said that BAFL declined to close on its lower circuit as the banking company declared its result for 2016.

“In its result, company posted earnings per share of Rs4.96/share with no dividend payout against market expectation of Rs2/share.”

Market watch: Index ends positive, surpasses 49,000

Trading volumes rose to 275 million shares compared with Thursday’s tally of 266 million.

Shares of 414 companies were traded. At the end of the day, 136 stocks closed higher, 261 declined while 17 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs14.1 billion.

Aisha Steel Mill was the volume leader with 24.3 million shares, losing Rs1.08 to close at Rs25.05. It was followed K-Electric Limited with 22.3 million shares, gaining Rs0.06 to close at Rs9.81 and Azgard Nine with 18.9 million shares, gaining 0.63 to close at Rs9.32.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers of Rs0.31 million during the trading session, according to data maintained by the National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited.