Index resists fall amid heavy buying in bank shares
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Sept 7: Stocks on Wednesday resisted a fresh decline boosted by fresh heavy buying in bank shares, although weakness of some leading oil shares, notably OGDC and Pakistan Oilfields, weighed heavily against the underlying sentiment.
The broader market, therefore, turned in a highly erratic performance amid alternate bouts of buying and selling amid active covering purchases at dips on the selected counters in a briskly traded session.
After having hit the day’s lowest and the highest at 7,794.60 and 7,871.27, respectively, showing an erratic movement of 77 points, the KSE 100-share index finally finished with an extended fractional fall of 2.63 points at 7,804.41, reflecting the weakness of leading base shares, including OGDC and PTCL.
Trading volume soared to a recent higher level of 430m shares from the previous 356m shares, unlike previous sessions, it was not confined to a single active share but judiciously shared by all the market leaders, although major chunk of it went to the credit of banks shares, which of late have assumed the role of market leader on the strength of reports of 97 all round growth in them.
The management of Kot Addu Power Company, one of the leading energy producers, gave pleasant surprise to the leading analysts after having declared cash dividend of Rs4.50 or 45 per share on post-tax profit of Rs8.045 billion.
Analysts said there was nothing inherently wrong with the underlying sentiment, notably in the backdrop of higher dividend and bonus shares and attributed the current pruning to a long overdue technical correction.
“The market is expected to demonstrate its real worth after the Friday’s strike called by the opposition against the government policies on the strength of objective corporate scenario.”
Volatile performance of some the leading index shares, notably OGDC, Pakistan Oilfields and PTCL, was the chief destabilizing factor behind the market’s uneven stance, but it is said to be a temporary phase before the expected price flare-up, they added.
Plus signs dominated the list under the lead of Pakistan Services, Shell Pakistan, Millat Tractors and Wyeth Pakistan, which posted gains ranging from Rs7 to Rs51, the largest rise being in the latter.
Other good gainers included Adamjee Insurance, Nishat Chunian, Arif Habib Securities, EFU Life, Lakson Tobacco, Attock Refinery, Sapphire Fibre, Al-Ghazi Tractors, Ferozsons Lab, and Shell Gas, up by Rs4.10 to Rs8.75.
Losers were led by National Foods, Colgate Pakistan, Aventis, Atlas Honda, Abbott Lab, Artistic Denim, Pakistan Oilfields and Bhanero Textiles, off Rs5 to Rs15.25.
Out of 324 actives, 157 shares managed to post good gains, while 124 fell, with 43 shares holding on to the last levels.
Bank of Punjab led the list of actives, up Rs3.20 at Rs103.60 on 72m shares, followed by National Bank, off 75 paisa at Rs122.60 on 45m shares, DG Khan Cement, higher by Rs1.75 at Rs64.55 on 43m shares, OGDC, off Rs1.50 at Rs110.55 on 39m shares, MCB, up Rs2.65 at Rs113.80 on 38m shares, PTCL, easy 45 paisa at Rs65.85 on 38m shares, and Pakistan Petroleum, higher by Rs2.45 at Rs184.95 on 21m shares.
Other actives were led by Pak PTA, firm by 40 paisa on 38m shares, Nishat Mills, higher by Rs3.90 on 20m shares and Pakistan Oilfields, off Rs10.55 on 12m shares.
FORWARD COUNTER: OGDC also came in for active selling on the cleared list and was marked down by Rs1.85 at Rs111.45 on 17m shares, followed by Bank of Punjab, higher by Rs3.35 at Rs104.60 on 14m shares and National Bank, steady by 25 paisa at Rs123.45 on 11m shares, Pakistan Petroleum, up Rs1.60 at Rs185.60 on 11m shares and MCB, up Rs2.20 at Rs113.95 on 10m shares.
All others were modestly traded mostly on the higher side amid light volume and fractional gains.
DEFAULTER COS: Crescent-Standard Investment Bank came in for active support and rose by one rupee at Rs12 on 0.137m shares. All others were fractionally traded, barring Trust Brokerage, up one rupee at Rs8 on 2,500 shares.
DIVIDEND: Kot Addu Power, cash 45 per cent; Imrooz Modaraba, cash 47 per cent; Dawood Capital Management, bonus shares at the rate of 10 per cent; Dawood Mutual Fund, bonus shares of one per cent.
BOARD MEETINGS: Altern Energy, on Sept 9; Dawood Lawrence, on 13; Habib Modaraba, Dynea Pakistan, Ravi Textiles, on 14; Cherat Cement, on 15; and OGDC, on Sept 19.
KARACHI, Sept 7: Stocks on Wednesday resisted a fresh decline boosted by fresh heavy buying in bank shares, although weakness of some leading oil shares, notably OGDC and Pakistan Oilfields, weighed heavily against the underlying sentiment.
Volatile performance of some the leading index shares, notably OGDC, Pakistan Oilfields and PTCL, was the chief destabilizing factor behind the market’s uneven stance, but it is said to be a temporary phase before the expected price flare-up, they added.
