Business

Market watch: KSE-100 falls 55 points in lacklustre trading

Benchmark index decreases 0.14% to settle at 40,016.13

Our Correspondent February 22, 2019

Benchmark index decreases 0.14% to settle at 40,016.13. PHOTO: AFP

KARACHI: The stock market extended its bearish spell on Friday as there were no significant positive triggers to propel the benchmark index and trading remained lacklustre.

The KSE-100 index dived nearly 270 points in the first hour of trading amid a lack of positive news. Although the index managed to recover before the midday break, the decline continued after the resumption of trading in the second session. Many investors opted to book profits and stayed on the sidelines.

At the end of trading, the benchmark KSE 100-share Index recorded a decrease of 54.58 points, or 0.14%, to settle at 40,016.13.

JS Global analyst Danish Ladhani said the KSE-100 shed 55 points as financial stocks were the major laggards. Habib Bank (-1.2%) remained in the red while United Bank (-5%) hit its lower limit.

National Bank (-2.3%) reported 2018 earnings per share (EPS) of Rs9.41 with no cash dividend while Bank Alfalah (-0.6%) reported a consolidated EPS of Rs6.19 for 2018 and dividend of Rs1.5 per share.

Oil and Gas Development Company (+0.8%) also announced its results where the company reported 1HFY19 EPS of Rs13.20 with dividend of Rs3 per share.

Market watch: Stocks retreat as investors resort to profit-booking

United Bank (-5%), Habib Bank (-1.2%), Engro (-0.9%), National Bank (-2.3%), Lucky Cement (-0.5%) and Kapco (-1.5%) cumulatively erased 144 points from the index.

"Going forward, we expect the market to remain volatile on geo-political concerns in the wake of tensions with India," the analyst said.

Overall, trading volumes decreased to 98.7 million shares compared with Thursday's tally of 102.6 million. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs5.5 billion.

Shares of 313 companies were traded. At the end of the day, 132 stocks closed higher, 162 declined and 19 remained unchanged.

The Bank of Punjab was the volume leader with 7.4 million shares, losing Rs0.07 to close at Rs13.36. It was followed by Pak Elektron with 5.6 million shares, losing Rs0.12 to close at Rs25.21 and Oil and Gas Development Company with 4.2 million shares, gaining Rs1.18 to close at Rs154.19.

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers of Rs252.97 million worth of shares during the trading session, according to data compiled by the National Clearing Company of Pakistan.