Stocks’ retreat continues for third straight day
KARACHI: On the first trading day of May, equities remained under pressure with the KSE-100 index taking a plunge of 236.81 points (0.64 per cent) and settle at 36,547.
It marked the third consecutive session of index closing in the red. Having lost 1,570 points or 4.1pc in April, it was yet too early to say if the investors would follow the adage: “Sell in May and go away.”
Mutual funds liquidated portfolio worth $1.44m in line with their recent selling spree but several brokerage houses were trying to sell optimism. As there were no reliable reports on negotiations with the International Monetary Fund, except assertion by Finance Adviser Dr Hafeez Shaikh that he was hopeful of successful conclusion to bailout package, investors decided to remain cautious.