KARACHI, Aug 16: Stocks on Wednesday were back on the rails on strong short-covering in the leading oil and bank base shares at the lower levels, breaking the last five sessions’ bearish spell. The KSE index was up by 259 points at 10,577.00, adding Rs68.00bn to the market capital.
The rebound was overdue in an oversold market but was delayed owing to some psychological factors including post-dividend selling in oil shares by some of the leading investors.
The market’s positive mood was well-reflected in the KSE 100-share index that staged a sharp rebound triggered partly by higher dividend by the oil sector and partly to rumours of lifting of ban on short-selling on forward trading.
It finished recovered by 259.30 points or 2.51 per cent at 10,576.71 as compared to 10,317.41 a day earlier as leading base shares, notably OGDC, PTCL, National Bank and Pakistan Petroleum finished around their upper locks. Some of them were up by Rs4.10, Rs2.05, Rs8.35 and Rs11.80 respectively.
“The snap rally after five terribly lean sessions appears to be a belated positive reaction to 90 per cent payout by the OGDC,” says a leading stock analyst Faisal Abbas, adding “but what seems to have intensified buying is market talk of another pleasant surprise from the Pakistan Petroleum in its board meeting on Thursday”.
Some of the dividend announcements from leading companies including banks and cement are still in the pipeline and may allow the market to sustain the current run-up in the sessions to come, he hopes.
But what seems to have given credence to the belated positive reaction to higher payouts by oil giants including PSO and Shell Pakistan was the lower levels most of the leading shares had reached during the last week’s sell-off and an attractive bait of capital gains, he adds.
But Hasnain Asghar Ali says market talk of KSE board meeting to review the ban on future trading and possibly to lift it to restore sanity to highly erratic movements of the index appears to be current point in debate.
Plus signs dominated the list leading among them being Pakistan Oilfields and Shell Pakistan, up Rs17.80 and Rs27, followed by MCB, National Bank, Clover Pakistan ahead of its board meeting, Arif Habib Securities, Rafhan Bestfoods, Pakistan Cables, Pakistan Petroleum, PSO, Attock Petroleum, and National Refinery, which posted gains ranging from Rs6 to Rs14.95.
Losers were led by Mustehkam Cement and Rafhan Maize, off Rs5 and Rs10. They were followed by IGI Insurance, Atlas Battery, National Foods and Pakistan Services, off Rs4.80 to Rs5. Others fell fractionally.
Trading volume rose to 177m shares from the previous 71m shares as gainers forced a strong lead over the losers at 193 to 77, with 28 shares holding on to the last levels.
Bank of Punjab topped the list of actives, up by Rs4.10 at Rs90.90 on 19m shares, followed by OGDC, higher by Rs4.10 at Rs137.35 on 16m shares, National Bank, up by Rs8.35 at Rs235.85 on 16m shares, PTCL, firm by Rs2.05 at Rs44.75 on 13m shares, Pakistan Petroleum, higher by Rs11.80 at Rs256.30 on 11m shares, Pakistan Oilfields, higher by Rs17.80 on 10m shares and MCB, up by Rs6 at Rs228 also on 10m shares.
They were followed by D.G. Khan Cement, up by Rs3.70 on 12m shares, Fauji Fertiliser Bin Qasim, firm by 60 paisa on 6m shares and Telecard, higher by 65 paisa also on 6m shares.
FORWARD COUNTER: Pakistan Oilfields, topped the list of actives on this counter, up by Rs17.90 on 5m shares, followed by Pakistan Petroleum, higher by Rs11.70 at Rs257.20 on 5m shares, National Bank, up by Rs7.80 at Rs236.80 on 4m shares.
OGDC followed them, up by Rs4.30 at Rs138.15 also on 4m shares and Bank of Punjab, higher by Rs4.25 at Rs91.25 on 4m shares. Others leading shares also rose on light turnover.
DEFAULTER COMPANIES: Norrie Textiles came in for active support and rose by 75 paisa at Rs2.50 on 0.676m shares followed by Crescent Standard Investment Bank, unchanged at Rs4.65 on 0.103m shares. Others showed narrow movement amid slow trading.
DIVIDEND: Meezan Balanced Fund, cash 20 per cent, Din Textiles, nil.
BOARD MEETINGS: Clover Pakistan on Aug 17, Japan Power on Aug 19, Attock Petroleum, Bank al-Habib, Service Industries, Habib Insurance, Glaxo-SKF and Network Microfinance Bank on Aug 22.