Market watch: KSE-100 extends gains, but trading remains volatile

Benchmark index increases 287.25 points to settle at 38,792.09

KARACHI: The KSE-100 index extended its gains on Wednesday and rose 287 points, ending the second successive session in the black.

The rise came due to emergence of clarity on Pakistan's economic front which aided investor sentiments.

In the morning, the market opened on a positive note, but selling pressure dragged it down soon. Still, the market managed to recover after midday and closed near the 38,800-point level.

The cement sector was in the green following news of 18.9% higher sales in September 2018. Automobile stocks performed poorly on the back of massive rupee depreciation and expected rise in vehicle prices.



At close, the benchmark KSE 100-share Index recorded an increase of 287.25 points or 0.75% to settle at 38,792.09.

Elixir Securities' analyst Murtaza Jafar said the benchmark index recorded another volatile session with intra-day movement of 932 points. The index managed to close in the black at 38,792.

Financial stocks led the points table, contributing over 170 points. DG Khan Cement (+5%), Engro Polymer and Chemicals (+5%) and Attock Refinery Limited (+4.8%) recovered from their day's lows and traded at or near their upper limits, further boosting investor's confidence, Jafar said.

"Moving forward, we expect the market to face immediate resistance around 39,200-39,700."



Overall, trading volumes decreased to 199.3 million shares compared with Tuesday's tally of 225.1 million. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs7.2 billion.

Shares of 384 companies were traded. At the end of the day, 181 stocks closed higher, 181 declined and 22 remained unchanged.

TRG Pakistan was the volume leader with 21.65 million shares, gaining Rs0.25 to close at Rs24.55. It was followed by Unity Foods with 11.34 million shares, gaining Rs0.05 to close at Rs26.52 and WorldCall Telecom with 9.55 million shares, gaining Rs0.02 to close at Rs1.6.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers of Rs129.4 million worth of shares during the trading session, according to data compiled by the National Clearing Company of Pakistan.