KARACHI, March 28: Stocks on Monday resumed trading on an easy note despite reports of massive intervention by the banks and some financial institutions to put the market back on the rails, the underlying sentiment remained bearishly inclined in the absence of strong demand from any quarter. But investor confidence in the share market is so badly shaken owing to massive battering of the leading stocks during the last week that general investors remained conspicuous by their absence and did not venture to come forward and cover positions at the falling levels. Report that the US has approved the sale of F-16s to Pakistan failed to enthuse shaky investors.

The KSE 100-share index suffered a fresh sharp setback of 256.66 points at 7,708.29 as compared to 7,964.95 at the last weekend session, reflecting further erosions in the values of leading base shares. Market capital also suffered a fresh decline of Rs66.726bn at Rs2,112.328bn.

“About Rs19 billion were injected into the system by the banks but it failed to reverse the trend as there were no general buyers even at the attractively lower levels”, analysts said.

But KSE high-ups, however, predict there is no panic in the market and the official steps including margin financing and increase in bank exposure limits taken during the last couple of days could halt the massive retreat.

Official corrective steps taken by the central bank and SECP may be at work during the last couple of sessions but brokers said it would take long to restore the past glory of stock trading.

“Corrective steps alone could hardly come to the rescue of the market,” says a leading analyst “restoration of badly shaken confidence of small and general investors in the backdrop of massive losses could play a dominating role to put the market back on the rails”.

All the leading base shares including OGDC, PTCL, PPL, PSO and Pakistan Oilfields and many others remained under pressure and triggered sympathetic selling from some prominent brokers who tried to get of the market.

Prominent losers were led by Arif Habib Securities, Javed Omer, Pakistan Oilfields, PSO, Colgate Pakistan, Unilever Pakistan and Wyeth Pakistan, which fell by Rs12.65 to Rs49.65. Many other fell by Rs6 to Rs8.60.

Some of the leading shares managed to reverse the downward drift and rose by Rs4 to Rs42 for PICIC, EFU Life, National Refinery, Shell Pakistan, International Industries, Millat Tractors, Treet Corporation and Siemens Pakistan, the largest gainer.

Trading volume showed a modest increase at 172m shares from the previous 109m shares as losers maintained a strong lead over the losers at 212 to 126, with 16 shares holding on to the last levels.

PTCL led the list of actives, off Rs3.50 at Rs65, followed by Pak PTA, easy 15 paisa at Rs11.40 on 25m shares, Fauji Fertilizer Bin Qasim, off Rs1.20 at Rs27.20 on 24m shares, TRG Pakistan, higher by Rs1.50 at Rs12.10 on 8m shares and Hub-Power, easy 45 paisa at Rs27.60 also on 8m shares.

Other actives were led by D.G. Khan Cement, off Rs2.96 on 7m shares, PSO, sharply lower by Rs19.49 on 6m shares, Fauji Cement, steady by 15 paisa on 5m shares, Dewan Salman, lower Rs1.15 on 4m shares and Nishat Mills, off Rs4.30 also on 4m shares.

FORWARD: Speculative shares on the cleared list came in for fresh heavy selling under the lead of PSO, off Rs19.49 on 8m shares followed by PTCL, down Rs3.45 also on 8m shares and KAPCO, lower Rs2.30 at Rs44.65 on 5m shares.

Fauji Fertilizer was an exception, which recovered Rs9.50 at Rs137.30 on 2m shares but Fauji Fertilizer Bin Qasim fell by Rs1.45 at Rs28.05 on 3m shares. Others were modestly traded mostly on the lower side.

DEFAULTER COS: Trading on this counter remained insipid as investors remained busy in the ready section squaring up their positions. Price changes were mostly fractional on the lower side.