Market watch: Stocks fall marginally as investors opt to sell
Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) benchmark 100-share index ended 0.15 per cent or 16.26 points lower at 11,154.83.
KARACHI:
Stocks fell marginally on Wednesday as local investors turned sellers ahead of the central bank’s monetary policy announcement next week.
The Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) benchmark 100-share index ended 0.15 per cent or 16.26 points lower at 11,154.83.
The monetary policy is due to be announced on November 29 for the next two months and dealers said investors cautiously await an expected 50-basis-point hike in the key policy rate.
Expectations are mixed with some analysts predicting that the central bank will increase the policy rate by 50 basis points while others expect the rate to stay unchanged.
Investors largely ignored news of an additional capital gains tax (flood tax surcharge on CGT liability) as effective impact remains minimal, said Elixir Securities equity dealer Sibtain Mustafa.
In the Senate Standing Committee on Finance meeting on Tuesday, the Federal Board of Revenue announced a one per cent flood surcharge on 10 per cent Capital Gains Tax (CGT) for equity investors. After the imposition of this flood surcharge, the total tax on capital gains of investors will increase to 11 per cent from 10 per cent.
Foreigners were sellers of banking scrips while locals were sellers of energy shares, said JS Global Capital analyst Mujtaba Barakzai.
Brisk activity was witnessed in Nishat Mills – the fifth most traded scrip - and Azgard Nine – the second most traded scrip – after cotton prices continued their downward trend in global markets. Trade volumes were 153.97 million shares compared with the previous day’s tally of 154.97 million shares.
Shares of 396 companies were traded on Wednesday. At the end of the day, 180 stocks closed higher, 191 declined and 25 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs5.91 billion. Jahangir Siddiqui was the volume leader with 13.7 million shares losing Rs0.52 to finish at Rs13.28. It was followed by Azgard Nine with 13.18 million shares gaining Rs0.32 to close at Rs11.71 and Lotte Pakistan with 12.7 million shares closing unchanged at Rs11.84.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 25th, 2010.
Stocks fell marginally on Wednesday as local investors turned sellers ahead of the central bank’s monetary policy announcement next week.
The Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) benchmark 100-share index ended 0.15 per cent or 16.26 points lower at 11,154.83.
The monetary policy is due to be announced on November 29 for the next two months and dealers said investors cautiously await an expected 50-basis-point hike in the key policy rate.
Expectations are mixed with some analysts predicting that the central bank will increase the policy rate by 50 basis points while others expect the rate to stay unchanged.
Investors largely ignored news of an additional capital gains tax (flood tax surcharge on CGT liability) as effective impact remains minimal, said Elixir Securities equity dealer Sibtain Mustafa.
In the Senate Standing Committee on Finance meeting on Tuesday, the Federal Board of Revenue announced a one per cent flood surcharge on 10 per cent Capital Gains Tax (CGT) for equity investors. After the imposition of this flood surcharge, the total tax on capital gains of investors will increase to 11 per cent from 10 per cent.
Foreigners were sellers of banking scrips while locals were sellers of energy shares, said JS Global Capital analyst Mujtaba Barakzai.
Brisk activity was witnessed in Nishat Mills – the fifth most traded scrip - and Azgard Nine – the second most traded scrip – after cotton prices continued their downward trend in global markets. Trade volumes were 153.97 million shares compared with the previous day’s tally of 154.97 million shares.
Shares of 396 companies were traded on Wednesday. At the end of the day, 180 stocks closed higher, 191 declined and 25 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs5.91 billion. Jahangir Siddiqui was the volume leader with 13.7 million shares losing Rs0.52 to finish at Rs13.28. It was followed by Azgard Nine with 13.18 million shares gaining Rs0.32 to close at Rs11.71 and Lotte Pakistan with 12.7 million shares closing unchanged at Rs11.84.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 25th, 2010.