KARACHI, June 27: Stocks on Monday finished with an extended loss as investors played safe owing to year-end considerations and liquidity problems amid a lightly traded session. The KSE 100-shares index suffered a fresh fall of 95.02 points at 7,255.44 points slightly above the day’s lowest bid of 7,234.43, as leading shares fell on renewed selling. Pakistan Petroleum, one of the index heavy-weights was, however, an exception, which recovered Rs3.50 at Rs212.
A section of leading investors continued to unload badla-related positions in rung off June settlements in the wake of its progressive phasing out into margin financing and in the absence of covering purchases at the dips, prices fell further across the board.
But analysts said a consortium of banks, which has committed to set a side Rs30 billion for the brokerage houses for margin financing is said to be not that liberal in extending required credit lines and the switch over has created liquidity problems for the investors.
What seems to worry brokers is post-privatization persistent selling in the PTCL, which otherwise should have led the entire market as it has been doing early this year on its sell-off talk.
It has fallen by Rs9 during the post-privatization sessions, which reflects tactical selling by an interested group to push its price below Rs60, and then to resume covering operations.
What is more disturbing all other heavy-weights, including OGDC, Pakistan Oilfields, National Bank and PSO are following its trend, sending bearish signals to the general investors.
“Year-end portfolio adjustments may be another reason behind the current sluggishness but the chief factor is liquidity problems”, they said adding “falling volumes signal investors are just marking time giving time to banks to for adequate funding under margin financing”.
They said in market parlance it could be year-end pause but some others claim the market is the victim of technical factors including squaring of carryover transactions (COT) positions in the June contracts.
Investors are expected to be back in the market during the first week of the new fiscal year, which begins on July 1, as by that time outstanding positions in the rung off June settlements will be squared up, they added.
Although losers again dominated the list some leading shares managed to finish partially recovered under the lead of EFU Life Insurance, Pakistan Services, Unilever Pakistan, Artistic Denim, and Arif Habib Securities, which posted gains ranging from Rs7.90 to Rs16.95 followed by Zulfiqar Industries, Clover Pakistan, Pakistan Petroleum, and Haroon Oils, up by Rs3 to Rs4.05.
Losers were led by some of the leading foreign MNCs, notably Park-Davis, off Rs26 followed by Clariant Pakistan, Nestle MilkPak, and Glaxo-SKF, off Rs5 to Rs6.
Other prominent losers included Mari Gas, National Refinery, PSO, Berger Paints and AKD Securities, off Rs4 to Rs6.95.
Trading, therefore, remained dull as volume fell to 119m shares from the previous 208m shares, while losers maintained a strong lead over the gainers at 191 to 67, with 41 shares holding on to the last levels.
The active list was again led by PTCL, sharply lower by Rs3.15 at Rs61.10 on 37m shares followed by OGDC, lower Rs1.10 at Rs103.35 on 19m shares, Pakistan Petroleum, up by Rs3.50 at Rs212 on 12m shares, National Bank, off Rs1.20 at Rs104.50 also on 12m shares, Bank of Punjab, lower 10 paisa at Rs79.05 on 5m shares, PSO, off Rs5.90 at Rs272.50 on 4m shares.
Other actives included Pakistan Oilfields, lower 30 paisa on 5m shares, Attock Petroleum, higher by Rs1.05 on 3m shares and D.G. Khan Cement, off 65 paisa on 2m shares.
FORWARD COUNTER: Pakistan Petroleum came in for active short-covering at the weekend lower levels and rose by Rs2.25 at Rs216.75 on 14m shares, PTCL, off Rs3.25 at Rs62.50 also on 14m shares, OGDC, lower Rs1.10 at Rs105.40 on 7m shares, PSO, lower by Rs5.25 at Rs381.75 on 3m shares and National Bank, up by Rs1.05 at Rs108.90 on 2m shares.
DEFAULTER COS: Prices on this counter also fell in sympathy with the ready section but there was no large volume in any of the shares. S.S. Oils and Al-Asif Sugar, which rose by 35 and 55 paisa, were leading among the gainers followed by Nazir Cotton and Dawood Fibre, which rose by 70 and 85 paisa, while losers were led by Myfip Video, and Crescent-standard Bank and Trust Brokerage, each off 75 paisa and Re1 respectively.