KARACHI, June 24: Stocks finished the weekend session on an easy note despite active short-covering in the leading oil shares as broader market stayed weak in the absence of strong institutional support.
However, the performance of the market was again highly erratic as leading investors played on both sides of the fence without taking long positions on any of the counters.
The KSE 100-share shed another 67.24 points at 7,350.46 as compared to 7,417.70 a day earlier as leading base shares fell further. It touched the highest and the lowest at 7,417.70 and 7,297.19, respectively, amid alternate bouts of buying and selling in the pivotals.
The post-privatization weakness of PTCL, which has lost Rs6 since June 18, continued to weigh heavily against the broader market as well as leading base shares being one of them, brokers said.
“There should not be any negative fallout of the sell-off in the backdrop of highest price offered by the new management”, they said “It appears to be a tactical selling to bring its price down below the Rs60 mark and then to cover positions at the lower levels”.
Until the current sell-off in leading shares, notably PTCL, PSO, Pakistan Petroleum and OGDC turns into covering purchases, the market may also maintain the current posture amid low volumes in the sessions to come.
Settlement worries in the forward June contracts were still there but unlike the previous sessions, it may not have immediate relevance to the current market trend.
But what worries most is the highly volatile performance of the oil giants, notably OGDC, Pakistan Petroleum, PSO and Pakistan Oilfields. “In one session they create boom-like conditions but the very next day they hit bottom on active profit-selling”.
Two opinions about margin financing by the banks instead of age-old badla and broker complaints of inadequate credit lines may be one of the reasons behind the market’s instability and erratic movements but institutional traders could come to rescue the falling market, analysts said.
Arif Habib Securities and Pakistan Refinery were leading among the gainers, up by Rs6 and Rs7, followed by Bank of Punjab, Faysal Bank, National Bank, Gadoon Textiles, Al-Ghazi Tractors, Murree Brewery, Clariant Pakistan, Abbott Lab, Glaxo-SKF, and Pakistan Oilfields, up by Rs2.40 to Rs5.75.
Losers were led by Mari Gas on selling after the announcement of a second interim at the rate of 10 per cent, and EFU General Insurance, off Rs8 to Rs8.90. Other prominent losers included Javed Omer, Artistic Denim, Sapphire Textiles, Thal, PSO, Millat Tractors, and Pakistan Petroleum, off Rs3 to Rs7.50.
PTCL again came in for active selling and was marked down by Rs1.70 at Rs64.25 on 59m shares followed by OGDC, lower Rs1.75 at Rs104.45 on 50m shares, National Bank, up by Rs3.50 at Rs106.70 on 33m shares, Pakistan Petroleum, off Rs7.50 at Rs208.50 on 19m shares, Pakistan Oilfields, up by Rs5.75 at Rs275.75 on 10m shares, PSO, off Rs3.50 at Rs378.40 on 7m shares and PICIC Growth Fund, lower Rs1.15 at Rs51.50 on 3m shares.
Other actives included D.G. Khan Cement, lower 50 paisa on 3m shares, Bank of Punjab, higher by Rs2.65 at Rs79.15 also on 3m shares and MCB, up by 40 paisa on 2m shares.
FORWARD COUNTER: Both the settlements of PTCL remained under pressure and fell further by Rs1.15 and Rs2.04 for both the maturing June and the ruling July contracts at Rs64 and Rs65.75 respectively on 15m and 8m shares.
Pakistan Petroleum fell by Rs8.50 at Rs208 for the June settlement and Rs7.60 lower for the July contract at Rs214.50 on 6m and 12m shares respectively. OGDC, fell by Re1 at Rs106.50 on 12m shares. Others also fell amid light trading. PSO also fell by Rs4.45, while Pakistan Oilfield recovered Rs4.35 on active support at the lower levels.
DEFAULTER COS: Trading on this counter remained dull owing to slack demand. Price changes were fractional mostly on the lower side. There was no big deal in any of the share, which came in for trading.
KARACHI, June 24: Stocks finished the weekend session on an easy note despite active short-covering in the leading oil shares as broader market stayed weak in the absence of strong institutional support.
Settlement worries in the forward June contracts were still there but unlike the previous sessions, it may not have immediate relevance to the current market trend.
