KARACHI: The Pakistan stock market offered something to cheer on Friday as it staged a rally that saw the KSE-100 index climb 842.37 points (3.09 per cent) and close at 28,109.57.

The second consecutive day of positive closing after the index had faltered by nearly 10pc earlier in the week saw investors tread with cautious optimism.

Regulatory measures adopted by the SBP and Pakistan Bankers Association with regards to margin on shares as collaterals, as well as relaxation in terms of classification of doubtful and bad debts on banks’ financial statements offered much clarity to investors, which prodded them to pick stocks available at dirt cheap valuations.

However, figures released by the National Clearing Company in the evening showed continuous foreign selling of $2.49 million. Local companies also sought an exit through sale of shares of $2.54m. Institutional investors could not shake off the burning issue of COVID-19 and its repercussions on the global and country’s economy. Individuals who bought stocks of $3.75m were the major buyers.

The volume shrank 10pc over the previous day to 169.4m shares while traded value of shares also fell 24pcc to $25.6m which was attributable to shorter trading time and lack of institutional participation.

Sectors contributing to the positive performance included fertiliser, higher by 198 points, banks 180 points, cement 133 points, power 108 points, exploration and production 44 points.

Encouraged by the additional interest rate cut, the heavily leveraged cement stocks made a swift recovery. Major gainers were DG Khan, up 6.9pc, Lucky 6.8pc, Maple Leaf 7.5pc, Pioneer 7.5pc, Fauji Cement 7.8pc and Cherat Cement 7.4pc all of which closed at or near to their upper circuits.

Investor interest was also seen in the banking sector where save for Habib Bank which ended in the red, other big players including United, rising by 6.9pc, MCB 6.4pc, Alfalah 2.5pc and Bank of Punjab 1.7pc gained values.

Published in Dawn, March 28th, 2020