KARACHI: Stocks closed positive for the second consecutive day on Thursday, as buying interest was witnessed in the oil and banking sectors amid developments in those areas at the government level.
The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 share Index increased by 252.61 points or 0.32 per cent to 78,528.25 points against 78,275.65 points recorded in the last session. The highest index of the day remained at 78,978.60 points while the lowest level was recorded at 78,294.23 points.
Analyst Ahsan Mehanti at Arif Habib Corp said, “Stocks closed higher led by oil and banking scrips on strong valuations.”He said the finance minister’s proposal to abolish a 15 per cent additional tax on banking profits for NA approval; government approval of Rs 82 billion OGDC principal dues and Rs92 billion interest repayment; and deliberations on privatization of SOEs played a catalyst role in the bullish activity in the PSX.
The KSE-30 index increased by 51.42 points or 0.20 per cent to 25,432.78 points against 25,381.36 points.Traded shares decreased by 186 million shares to 283.542 million shares from 469.756 million shares. The trading value decreased to Rs11.067 billion from Rs19.777 billion. Market capital expanded to Rs10.333 trillion against Rs10.297 trillion. Of 426 companies active in the session, 211 closed in green, 150 in red and 65 remained unchanged.
Naveed Nadeem, an analyst at Topline Securities, said Pakistan’s equity market had a positive day on Thursday as the KSE 100 index rose to an intraday high of 78,979 points and a low of 78,294 points, closing at 78,528 points (up 253 points or 0.32 per cent).
The fertilizer, banking, cement, and E&P sectors contributed positively, with FFC, UBL, THALL, OGDC, and MARI collectively adding 214 points to the benchmark index.The highest increase was recorded in Unilever Pakistan Foods Limited shares, which rose by Rs104.99 to Rs18,396.67 per share, followed by Rafhan Maize Products Company Limited, which increased by Rs67.21 to Rs7,650 per share. A significant decline was noted in Fateh Industries Limited, which fell by Rs11.86 to Rs122.54 per share, Dawood Lawrencepur Limited followed it, which closed lower by Rs7.39 to Rs212 per share.
Brokerage Arif Habib Ltd stated the PSX experienced additional gains, showing improving market breadth as it attempts to carve out support at the 78,000 level. Looking ahead to Friday, maintaining levels above 78,000 will be crucial. Holding this support could potentially set up moves back towards the 80,000 mark, indicating a robust recovery phase for the market.
Market analysts are keeping a close watch on these developments, as the performance in the coming sessions will be pivotal in determining the market's direction. The PSX’s resilience and the broad participation of stocks suggest a potential stabilisation if key support levels are maintained.
WorldCall Telecom remained the volume leader with 27.558 million shares which closed higher by one paisa to Rs1.25 per share. K-Electric Ltd. followed it with 21.974 million shares, which closed higher by 9 paisas to Rs4.67 per share.
Other significant turnover stocks included Oil & Gas Dev, Pervez Ahmed Co, JS Bank Ltd, PTCL, Faysal Bank, Dewan Motors, Cnergyico PK and TRG Pak Ltd. In the futures market, 308 companies recorded trading, of which 140 increased, 162 decreased and 6 remained unchanged.