KARACHI, Aug 29: Stocks on Friday lacked normal trading interest as investors were not inclined to go beyond price freeze level despite higher corporate announcements and some positive developments on the political front, including smooth sailing on the presidential election front.

Apart from the weekend considerations, which generally slowed down the activity as day traders keep to the sidelines owing to risks involved, absence of a credible fund buying also weighed against the sentiment.

As a result, trading volume fell further at 24 million shares as investors just marked time owing to price freeze in the absence of tactical maneuvering and an apparent tag on speculative activity.

The previous single-session turnover lows were touched during the last month at 11.117m, 13.778m and the lowest figure so far being 5.349m shares hit on July 4, 2008 followed by operations against militants in the tribal areas.

The KSE 100-share index posted a fresh modest increase of 4.48 points at 9,208.26 as some of the leading shares, notably MCB Bank and Pakistan Petroleum managed to finish with fresh modest gains.

Some of the corrective steps taken by the SECP and the KSE to restore investors’ confidence failed to lure back them even at the attractively lower levels and in highly oversold market.

“The money is out flowing to other investment avenues, including gold and property as trading in stocks is now considered a losing option,” another analyst said.

However, analyst Faisal A. Rajabali Ali Hussain said dozens liquid shares are open for trading within their respective lower and upper locks limits but what ails the market is not that far to fathom,” adding liquidity crunch may be one of them and investors disinterestedness may be the other”.

News from the political front are not that encouraging as split between the two major coalition partners has raised many questions leading to confrontation and uncertainty, another analyst Ashraf Zakaria said.

That is perhaps why credibly well cash dividend and bonus shares by most of the leading companies failed to revive investors’ interest or boost trading, they said.

Leading gainers were led by Royal Bank, New Jubilee Insurance, Pakistan Petroleum, Shell Pakistan, Sapphire Fibres and Thal Industries, up by Rs1.50 to 6.01.

Losses on the other hand were mostly fractional barring Pak-Suzuki Motors, Allied Bank, National Refinery, Kohinoor Mills and Arif Habib Ltd, off by Rs1 to 4.01.

Out of the total actively traded shares, 50 rose, while 61 fell, with 102 holding on to the last levels.

NIB Bank again led the list of actives, easy by five paisa at Rs8.47 on 3m shares followed by MCB Bank, up one rupee at Rs244 on 2m shares, Pakistan Petroleum, higher by Rs2 at Rs212 also on 2m shares, Bank AlFalah, steady by five paisa at Rs31.35 on 1m shares, OGDC, unchanged at Rs97.93 on 0.979m shares, and PTCL, also unchanged at Rs31.50 on 0.970m shares.

Other actives included Zeal Pak Cement, lower nine paisa at Rs1.16 on 2m shares, United Bank, unchanged at Rs68.80 on 0.945m shares and Engro Chemical, lower by 95 paisa at Rs181.80 on 0.595m shares.

FORWARD COUNTER: NIB Bank also led the list of actives on this counter but its both the settlements were held unchanged at Rs8.50 and 8.60 on 1m and 0.886m shares followed by MCB Bank, also unchanged at 238.27 for its September contract but its August delivery was quoted higher by Rs1.67 at Rs244.52 on 0.892m shares.

DEFAULTER COS: Trading activity on this counter was slow in the absence of demand from the leading investors and prices ended with fractional either-way changes. Unity Modaraba came in for renewed selling and fell by two paisa at 53 paisa followed by Norrie Textiles, easy one paisa at Rs1.42 on 0.169m shares.