KARACHI: The benchmark of the Pakistan Stock Exchange closed at yet another all-time high on Wednesday amid a host of positive developments on the macroeconomic front.

Arif Habib Corporation Ltd analyst Ahsan Mehanti said the ongoing recovery in the rupee’s value against the dollar as well as upbeat economic indicators on the current account deficit and home remittances played a key role in driving up market sentiments.

The inflow of dollars from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) expected next month also supported the momentum.

Other contributing factors were surging prices of Pakistan’s dollar bonds in the international debt market following the completion of the IMF’s first quarterly review under the Stand-By Arrangement.

JS Global Capital Ltd said it expected range-bound activity to continue and recommended that investors should benefit from any downside in technology, cement and textile sectors as an opportunity to build positions.

As a result, the KSE-100 index closed at 58,198.76 points after gaining 827.17 points or 1.44 per cent from the preceding session.

The overall trading volume decreased 41.1pc to 596.2 million shares. The traded value increased 14pc to Rs22 billion on a day-on-day basis.

Stocks contributing significantly to the traded volume included WorldCall Telecom Ltd (50.3m shares), Fauji Fertiliser Bin Qasim Ltd (23.2m shares), Fauji Foods Ltd (20.1m shares), K-Electric Ltd (19.6m shares) and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd (16.8m shares).

Companies registering the biggest increases in their share prices in absolute terms were Ismail Industries Ltd (Rs60.47), Siemens Pakistan Engineering Ltd (Rs50.40), Nestle Pakistan Ltd (Rs50), Hoechst Pakistan Ltd (Rs49.17) and Sapphire Textile Mills Ltd (Rs36.83).

Companies registering the biggest decreases in their share prices in absolute terms were Rafhan Maize Products Company Ltd (Rs225.22), Philip Morris Pakistan Ltd (Rs20), Thal Ltd (Rs10.11), Al-Abbas Sugar Mills Ltd (Rs8.99) and Pakistan Hotels Developers Ltd (Rs8.50).

Foreign investors were net buyers as they purchased shares worth $3m.

Published in Dawn, November 23rd, 2023