The stock market saw subdued activity on Friday with the benchmark index finishing on a flat note.
Volatility prevailed as the KSE-100 index closed with a minor increase of 29 points after posting intra-day gain of 277 points and loss of 319 points amid sluggish investor participation.
The market initiated trading on a negative note amid mixed signals. However, towards midday, it managed to erase the losses and climb upwards but weak investor sentiment and a sombre mood wiped off some of the gains later.
Support to the index came from two financing agreements totalling $750 million with the World Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) for the Resilient Institutions for Sustainable Economy (RISE) programme.
In addition to that, reports of surging fertiliser sales and sharply higher power generation in June propelled relevant stocks.
However, economic uncertainty and rising coronavirus cases caused volatility in the stock exchange and the index oscillated between positive and negative zones throughout the day, before ending trading with a slight increase.
At close, the benchmark KSE-100 index recorded an increase of 29.41 points, or 0.08%, to settle at 37,607.62 points.
Arif Habib Limited, in its report, stated that the market opened on a negative note with -16 points and in total lost 319 points during the session due to selling pressure across the board.
The second session saw a rebound in the index, courtesy Habib Bank Limited (HBL) results, which were above street estimates. It turned the tide for the whole banking sector, resulting in HBL trading at its upper circuit followed by United Bank Limited (UBL), the report said.
The banking sector registered trading volumes of 33.3 million shares, followed by power firms (24.2 million) and cement companies (24.1 million).
Individually stocks that contributed positively to the index included HBL (+82 points), UBL (+43 points), MCB (+25 points), Bank Alfalah (+22 points) and Dawood Hercules (+22 points).
Stocks that contributed negatively included Hubco (-29 points), Lucky Cement (-26 points), OGDC (-21 points), PPL (-13 points) and Pakistan Oilfields (-11 points).
JS Global analyst Maaz Mulla said the PSX benchmark index blew hot and cold, touching intra-day high of +285 points and low of -319 points. It finally closed at 37,607 (+29 points).
Volumes decreased 30% to 267 million shares compared to 379 million shares in the previous trading session.
A rally was witnessed in the banking sector where HBL (+4.5%), UBL (+3.7%), Bank AL Habib (+2.3%), The Bank of Punjab (+2.2%) and MCB (+1.6%) gained ground.
Moreover, HBL announced its 1HCY20 results, posting earnings per share of Rs10.32. Honda Atlas Cars (+1.5%) from the auto sector declared its April-June quarterly results, recording a loss of Rs3.58 per share.
The cement sector continued to experience profit-booking where Fauji Cement (-1.5%), Lucky Cement (-1.6%), Cherat Cement (-1.7%) and Maple Leaf Cement (-1.5%) lost value.
“Moving forward, we recommend investors to book profit and wait for a dip for fresh buying. Our top picks are oil marketing, steel and refinery sectors,” the analyst said.
Overall, trading volumes decreased to 266.5 million shares compared with Thursday’s tally of 379.3 million. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs10.7 billion.
Shares of 373 companies were traded. At the end of the day, 158 stocks closed higher, 201 declined and 14 remained unchanged.
Unity Foods XR was the volume leader with 21.6 million shares, gaining Rs0.09 to close at Rs12.72. It was followed by K-Electric with 16.8 million shares, losing Rs0.08 to close at Rs3.16 and Fauji Fertiliser Bin Qasim with 15.8 million shares, gaining Rs0.81 to close at Rs19.51.
Foreign institutional investors were net sellers of Rs230.04 million worth of shares during the trading session, according to data compiled by the National Clearing Company of Pakistan.
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