KARACHI, Dec 28: Stocks on Wednesday remained in a bullish frame of mind but late selling in some of the leading shares allowed them to finish with clipped gains amid active trading.

There was no massive activity in any of the current volume leaders as financial investors’ being already in a overbought positions played safe moving on both sides of the fence. Fresh heavy buying in banks’ shares on reports of higher earnings, however, featured the trading as cement and some other blue chips also performed credibly well. After earlier in the session touching the session’s high of 9,512.89 points, the KSE 100-share index finally ended with an extended modest rise of 19.64 points at 9,466.47 as compared to previous 9,446.83 but leading base shares closed with clipped gains under the lead of OGDC. National Bank, MCB, Faysal Bank, Bank Alfalah and some others were in the forefront of gains, finishing with fresh strong gains on renewed buying aided by reports of higher cash dividend and bonus shares for the year ending Dec 31, 2005.

Cement sector also behaved in the same fashion as did banks but leading shares among them are still to pass on the benefits of exports and the higher local consumption to its shareholders, brokers said.

“I won’t call it the advent of year-end buying, but it has reinforced the investor perceptions that the year 2005 is going to be a record year in the trading history of the KSE in terms of capital gains, index level and market capital,” says a leading stock analyst.

But as widely speculated the index failed to hit its early year record level of 10,000 points, despite several bull abortive attempts and analysts’ predictions to hit it, but it stayed firm well above the 9,000 level.

“With only two sessions left to close the robust year on a terribly bullish note, the attainment of index level of 10,000 for the second time during the current year now appears to be a distant possibility,” analysts said.

Plus signs dominated the list, major gainers being Gillette Pakistan and Artistic Denim, up Rs10 and 9.80, the former has risen by about Rs50 during the last couple of sessions on reports of higher dividend.

Other prominent gainers were led by Adamjee Insurance, Central Insurance, Muslim Insurance, EFU Life, Sapphire Fibre, Thal Corporation, Suzuki Motors, Bata Pakistan, Sitara Chemicals, Mitchell’s Fruits, and Pakistan Services, which posted gains ranging from Rs4 to 8.90.

Losers were led by Unilever Pakistan and Sanofi Aventis, off Rs10 and 14 in that order followed by HinoPak Motors, New Jubilee Insurance, Mustehkam Cement, Huffaz Pipes, Singer Pakistan, Noon Pakistan and Shezan Pakistan, off Rs3 to 6.

Trading volume, though, was on the lower side of the daily average, rose as compared to previous figure of 204m at 259m shares. Gainers topped losers by 212 to 171, with 44 shares holding on to the last levels.

National Bank led the list of actives, up 65 paisa at Rs198.50 after hitting the day’s peak level of Rs201.80,on 25m shares, PTCL, higher by 35 paisa at Rs65.35 on 21m shares, Bank Al-Falah, up Rs3.10 at Rs72 on 16m shares,

Lucky Cement, firm by 30 paisa at Rs81.35 on 15m shares, OGDC, lower Rs1.10 at Rs116.30 on 14m shares, MCB, up Rs1.60 at Rs168 also on 14m shares, and Faysal Bank, higher by Rs3 at Rs73.60 on 10m shares.

Other actives were led by Telecard, up 60 paisa on 11m shares, D.G.Khan Cement, off one rupee on 10m shares and PIAC, firm by 15 paisa on 8m shares.

FORWARD COUNTER: Telecard and Lucky Cement came in for modest support and rose by 32 paisa and 15 paisa respectively at Rs17.70 and 82.75 for January settlements on 7m and 4m shares, while December contract of MCB posted a gain ranging from 76 paisa at Rs167.86, while PTCL fell by five paisa at Rs65.20 on 5m and 4m shares respectively. Others were modestly traded under the lead of PSO and some others.