Market Watch: Bourse surges 259 points ahead of Shaikh’s visit

Investors eye possible ease in capital gains tax.

KARACHI:

The stock market showed off what its got to offer on Friday by posting an impressive rally to close at a two-month high amid heavy activity, a day before the finance minister’s visit.

The Karachi Stock Exchange’s (KSE) benchmark 100-share index rockets 2.25 per cent or 259.09 points to end at the 11,774.68 point level.

Investors are hopeful that Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh’s visit will result in a positive outcome regarding the Capital Gains Tax issue which has been keeping activity at a dismal level for since imposition, said Topline Securities equity dealer Samar Iqbal. The said scheme is rumoured to revise CGT regulations related to audit with possibly no question on source of funds invested in equities till 2014.

Investors couldn’t resist the temptation and jumped on the bandwagon with buying across the board. Trade volumes jumped to healthy level of 178 million shares, highest since October 2010, compared with Thursday’s tally of 93 million shares.

Nishat group stocks MCB Bank and Nishat Mills closed at their upper limit of the day.

Shares of 340 companies were traded on Friday. At the end of the day 185 stocks closed higher, 69 declined while 86 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs6.82 billion.

Lafarge Pakistan was the volume leader with 27.7 million shares gaining Rs0.05 to finish at Rs2.06. It was followed by Jahangir Siddiqui and Company with 14.5 million shares firming Rs0.39 to close at Rs5.55 and Lotte Pakistan PTA with 8.67 million shares losing Rs0.04 to close at Rs9.95.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers of Rs132 million worth of shares, according to data maintained by the National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 21^st, 2012.