KARACHI, Jan 25: The recent upward drive on the stock market on Tuesday slightly slowed down as a section of investors took profits at the highly inflated levels, but selling was absorbed at dips.
The KSE 100-share index, however, posted a fresh gain of 25.61 points at 6,887.58 points.
Essentially, it was the relative weakness of the PTCL, one of the leading market players, which weighed heavily against the underlying sentiment, but fresh heavy buying in OGDC and Nishat Mills kept investors in a positive mood.
No one could deny the fact that the market is in a highly overbought position and needs a correction but the question being debated is whether the reaction should set in just now or after hitting the target of 7,000, brokers said.
Bulls seem to be in no mood at this stage to take even a technical breather, and are out to hit their next target of 7,000 before having an overview of the statistical data, they said.
"The next couple of sessions could be very crucial for the direction of the market as the question "what next after the 7,000 level" is still unanswered", they said.
After having breached the barrier of 6,900 at 6,935.00, the KSE 100-share index ended below it on late selling in the leading index shares, notably PTCL, which attracted profit-selling at the highly inflated levels. It finally closed around 6,887.58, up 25.61 points over the previous level.
"Thrice, during the last two sessions, it broke this crucial level but faced a formidable resistance," says a leading analyst. "But I don't think casual interruptions could halt its journey to 7,000 points."
With PTCL remaining under bearish spell for good reasons too, OGDC assumed the role of a trend-setter and remained in strong demand through the session ending with a fresh good gain and large volume.
Nishat Mills, which rose by Rs9.50 on reports of higher first quarter profit of Rs20 million again remained in active demand ahead of its board meeting tomorrow and market talk of an interim dividend.
During the last couple of weeks, its share value has soared by Rs50 from Rs60 to Rs110 on predictions of higher sales. It extended the overnight run-up and rose by another Rs8.10 and the KSE authorities have to apply the circuit breaker to forestall further increase in its share value.
Leading gainers were led by Fazal Textiles, Indus Dyeing, Nishat Chunian, Mehmood Textiles, Nestle MilkPak, Siemen's Pakistan and AKD Securities, up by Rs6.50 to Rs54.30. Tata Textiles, Al-Abid Silk, Atlas Honda, Kohinoor Textiles, Packages and Din Textiles also rose by Rs4.35 to 5.10.
Losers were led by Pakistan Services, Shell Pakistan, Bhanero Textiles and International Industries, off Rs8.70 to Rs14.45. Javed Omer, Hino Pak Motors, Sitara Chemicals, Zulfqar Industries, and Shafi Industries, fell by Rs4 to Rs5.85.
Trading volume fell to 666.345m shares from the previous 742.203m shares as gainers trailed far behind the losers at 166 to 197, with 40 shares holding on to the last levels.
OGDC topped the list of most actives, higher by Rs1.90 at Rs82.30 on 172m shares followed by PTCL, easy 35 paisa at Rs58.65 on 92m shares, Fauji Fertilizer Bin Qasim, off Rs1.60 at Rs116.40 on 47m shares, Nishat Mills, sharply higher by Rs8.10 at Rs116.40 on 47m shares and Hub-Power, up 45 paisa at Rs33 on 42m shares.
Other actives were led by National Bank, firm by 95 paisa on 34m shares, MCB, steady 20 paisa on 25m shares, Pakistan Oilfields, off Rs2.25 on 24m shares, DG Khan Cement, lower 35 paisa on 20m shares and Sui Southern Gas, off 90 paisa on 20m shares.
FORWARD COUNTER: PTCL came in for modest selling and fell fractionally by 10 paisa at Rs59.10 on 18m shares but PPL showed sharp decline of Rs3 at Rs138.80 on selling prompted apparently by not too positive news from its gas purification plant in Balochista, on 16m shares.
But OGDC on the other hand maintained its upward drive and finished with an extended gain of Rs2.12 at Rs82.15 on 11m shares. PPL and PTCL February contracts fell and so did PSO and some others.
DEFAULTER COS: Trading on this counter was relatively slow because of reaction in the ready section. However, Service Fabrics and Pangrio Sugar were an exception, which posted gains of 45 paisa and 35 paisa at Rs3.00 and 5.10 on 0.244m and 0.184m shares respectively.
