KEY POINTS
- KSE-100 Index settles at 152,665.72, up 463.85 points
- Market volume at 954.33 million shares, value Rs46.05 billion
- 480 active stocks: 208 gainers, 240 losers, 32 unchanged
- Hoechst Pakistan, Sitara Chemical lead gainers; PIA Holding, Siemens top losers
KARACHI, Pakistan: Bulls continued to dominate trading at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index reaching yet another record high amid strong sectoral performance and positive economic sentiment.
The index hit an intra-day peak of 153,411.05 before closing at 152,665.72, gaining 463.85 points or 0.30% compared to the previous session.
According to Mustafa Pasha, Executive Director at Lakson Investments, institutional inflows are driving valuations higher.
“Mutual funds have emerged as major buyers at the bourse in recent months because they are getting fresh inflows in their equity-based products,” he told Business Recorder.
Pasha added that optimism is building over a gradual economic recovery that could boost corporate earnings in the months ahead.
Market statistics
The volume of shares traded on the all-share index fell to 954.33 million from 1,043.23 million a day earlier, while the value of shares declined to Rs 46.05 billion from Rs 51.31 billion.
A total of 480 companies were active: 208 closed higher, 240 ended lower, while 32 remained unchanged.
Top performers
Hoechst Pakistan Ltd rose by Rs 101.89 to close at Rs 4,101.27
Sitara Chemical Industries Ltd gained Rs 72.52 to settle at Rs 797.70
Pak Int. Bulk traded actively with 38.56 million shares
Top losers
PIA Holding Company Ltd-B fell Rs475.13 to close at Rs26,340.67
Siemens (Pakistan) Engineering dropped Rs 122.00 to Rs 1,553.00
K-Electric Ltd remained among the most traded, with 45.31 million shares, but closed lower
Additional factors
The Pakistani rupee extended its winning streak, appreciating for the 20th consecutive session. It gained Re0.04 to close at 281.67 against the US dollar in the inter-bank market.
