Stocks rise as activity picks up in second half
Equities witnessed a relatively subdued first half but saw a flurry of activity in the second session on Friday.
Equities witnessed a relatively subdued first half but saw a flurry of activity in the second session on Friday which pulled the index to close 80 points up.
The Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) benchmark 100-share index gained 0.77 per cent or 80.36 points to end at 10519.02 point level.
The index in the last hour of the second trading session was led by a rally in the Pakistan State Oil (PSO) stock which appreciated by Rs10 on the back of rumours of higher than expected earnings and receipt of Rs15 billion payment from the Ministry of Finance, said Elixir Securities analyst Sara Shahid.
Shares of 353 companies were traded on Wednesday. At the end of the day 219 stocks closed higher, 121 declined while 13 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs4.9 billion.
The State Bank of Pakistan later during the day surprised many by increasing its discount rate to 13 per cent from 12.5 per cent.
This brought an end to the uncertainty regarding policy rate, said Shahid.
The general consensus was that the policy rate will remain unchanged at 12.5 per cent as a survey of 35 fund managers revealed that 93 per cent expected the status quo to be maintained.
Anticipation over NCL’s higher than expected earnings led to improved volumes during the first session, said JS Global Capital analyst Arsalan Khan.
United Bank Limited (UBL) took a hit after posting its half yearly result that was lower than market expectations. The company stock price fell Rs0.84 to end at Rs 58.63.
The market is expected to remain positive in the near term with the corporate results coming, said Khan.
Volume was at 64 million shares compared with 63.35 million shares traded on Thursday. Trade was dominated by second and third tier stocks.
Fatima Fertiliser was the volume leader with 23.6 million shares, gaining Rs.075 to close at Rs12.21. It was followed by Bank Al Falah with 6.8 million shares gaining Rs0.31 to close at Rs10.20 and Pakistan Telecommunicaion Communication Limited with 5.65 million shares gaining Rs0.59 to close at Rs20.1.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 31st, 2010.
The Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) benchmark 100-share index gained 0.77 per cent or 80.36 points to end at 10519.02 point level.
The index in the last hour of the second trading session was led by a rally in the Pakistan State Oil (PSO) stock which appreciated by Rs10 on the back of rumours of higher than expected earnings and receipt of Rs15 billion payment from the Ministry of Finance, said Elixir Securities analyst Sara Shahid.
Shares of 353 companies were traded on Wednesday. At the end of the day 219 stocks closed higher, 121 declined while 13 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs4.9 billion.
The State Bank of Pakistan later during the day surprised many by increasing its discount rate to 13 per cent from 12.5 per cent.
This brought an end to the uncertainty regarding policy rate, said Shahid.
The general consensus was that the policy rate will remain unchanged at 12.5 per cent as a survey of 35 fund managers revealed that 93 per cent expected the status quo to be maintained.
Anticipation over NCL’s higher than expected earnings led to improved volumes during the first session, said JS Global Capital analyst Arsalan Khan.
United Bank Limited (UBL) took a hit after posting its half yearly result that was lower than market expectations. The company stock price fell Rs0.84 to end at Rs 58.63.
The market is expected to remain positive in the near term with the corporate results coming, said Khan.
Volume was at 64 million shares compared with 63.35 million shares traded on Thursday. Trade was dominated by second and third tier stocks.
Fatima Fertiliser was the volume leader with 23.6 million shares, gaining Rs.075 to close at Rs12.21. It was followed by Bank Al Falah with 6.8 million shares gaining Rs0.31 to close at Rs10.20 and Pakistan Telecommunicaion Communication Limited with 5.65 million shares gaining Rs0.59 to close at Rs20.1.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 31st, 2010.