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Stocks settle above 79,000 for first time
KARACHI: The stock market delivered another strong performance on Tuesday, propelling the KSE 100 index to a record high, closing above 79,000 for the first time in its history.
Ahsan Mehanti of Arif Habib Corporation said stocks closed bullish ahead of corporate earnings season as investors weighed upbeat data on CPI inflation, which stood at 12.6pc year-on-year in June, averaging 23.4pc in FY24.
He said surging global crude oil prices, expectations for strong dividend payouts by the oil sector dominated by state-owned enterprises, and ongoing positive talks for an IMF bailout deal this month contributed to bullish activity at the PSX.
Topline Securities Ltd said the fertiliser, exploration and production, and banking sectors were key contributors, led by Fauji Fertiliser, Pakistan Petroleum, National Bank, International Industries Ltd, and United Bank, which collectively added 340 points.
As a result, the benchmark index hit an intraday high at 79,740.35 points and a low of 78,978.55. However, the index closed at an all-time high of 79,552.89 after rallying 728.55 points or 0.92pc on a day-on-day basis.
However, the overall trading volume jumped 35.00pc to 413.15 million shares. The traded value also rose 20.73pc to Rs16.59bn on a day-on-day basis.
Stocks contributing significantly to the traded volume included Worldcall Telecom (23.80m shares), K-Electric (23.10m shares), National Bank (20.12m shares), Dewan Motors (19.25m shares) and Fauji Fertiliser (13.67m shares).
The shares registering the most significant increases in their share prices in absolute terms were Philip Morris (Rs50.28), Data Agro Ltd (Rs24.07), International Industries Ltd (Rs17.63), Kohat Cement (Rs13.08) and ZIL Ltd (Rs11.93).
The companies registering significant decreases in their share prices in absolute terms were Sapphire Fibres (Rs123.80), Nestle Pakistan (Rs69.95), Rafhan Maize (Rs34.25), Ibrahim Fibres (Rs30.05) and Pak Tobacco (Rs27.82).
Foreign investors remained net sellers as they sold shares worth $0.01m.
Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2024
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