KARACHI: Stocks were hammered on Wednesday snapping the three-day rally due to lack of triggers despite persistent foreign buying which amounted to $4.40 million. The KSE-100 index lost 314.48 points (0.96 per cent) and closed at 32,401.40.
With the excitement surrounding the Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to US and meeting with President Trump over, investors’ interest was diverted to the results season. Most market players were expecting considerable hit on corporate earnings, particularly the cyclicals, cement, automobile and steel.
The market opened in the positive and rose to intra-day high by 49 points. At mid-day, the index succumbed to selling pressure mainly by the mutual funds amounting to $4.23m. The figures released by the National Clearing Company of Pakistan showed institutions remaining on the side-lines. The index hit the intra-day low by 365 points.
Analysts at Arif Habib Limited predicted that an important indicator for market would be the Pakistan Investment Bond auction, where an inverted yield curve is anticipated to lure investors back to equities in the medium term.
Volumes declined from 97m shares to 84.2m shares down 13pc day-on-day. Average traded value declined by 4pc to $21m against $21.8m a day ago. Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes included Unity Foods, Maple Leaf Cement Factory, D G Khan Cement, Pak Elektron and TRG Pakistan, which formed 37pc of total turnover.
Sector-wise, exploration and production, fertiliser, autos, cement and banking sectors bled throughout the day.
Financial results of Habib Bank Ltd (HBL) and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd (SNGPL) were announced during the session, whereby SNGP received heavy bantering and HBL also saw selling pressure upon announcement of lower than anticipated results.
Investor sentiment remained at low ebb anticipating poor results from listed entities. Stocks that contributed negatively to the Index included Engro Corporation down 41 points, Hub Power Company 35 points, HBL 33 points, Pakistan Petroleum Ltd eight points and Fauji Fertiliser Company 18 points.
Published in Dawn, July 25th, 2019
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