Bulls dominate as KSE-100 surges 856 points

KARACHI: Positive sentiments prevailed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) for the second consecutive session with the KSE-100 Index managing to cross the 30,000 mark, which it had previously breached.

As per market analysts, the sentiments improved on hopes that cross-border trade tension with India would soon be resolved.

On the economic front, the growth of large-scale manufacturing (LSM) industries declined by 3.6pc during the last fiscal year (FY19). Increase in interest rates and tight fiscal and monetary policies had an impact on the industrial sector.

Gaining 940.69 points or +3.08pc, the KSE-100 Index recorded its intraday high of 30,503.11. The index settled higher by 856.80 points or 2.82pc at 30,419.22. The KMI-30 Index accumulated 1,317.02 points to close at 47,695.29, while the KSE All Share Index added 466.35 points, ending at 22,273.17. The advancers to decliners ratio stood at 229 to 95.

The banking sector (+354.33 points), oil and gas exploration sector (+151.66 points) and fertilizer sector (+113.31 points) contributed positively to the KSE-100 Index. Habib Bank Limited (HBL +88.15 points), Engro Corporation Limited (ENGRO +80.21 points) and MCB Bank Limited (MCB +73.12 points) remained the top three contributors among companies.

The overall volumes improved from 102.52 million shares in the previous session to 142.58 million shares. The Bank of Punjab (BOP +8.78pc), TRG Pakistan Limited (TRG -0.15pc) and Maple Leaf Cement Factory Limited (MLCF -0.27pc) led the volume chart with 10.36 million shares, 8.99 million shares and 7.04 million shares respectively.

Engro Corporation Limited (ENGRO +5.00pc) declared its financials for the second quarter of FY19 along with an interim cash dividend of Rs8. The company’s earnings per share appreciated from Rs1.09 in the same period last year to Rs2.31.

Allied Bank Limited (ABL +0.45pc) and Pakistan International Container Terminal Limited (PICT +1.27pc) also declared their financials for the second quarter of FY19 along with interim cash dividends of Rs2 and Rs4 respectively. ABL’s EPS decreased from Rs2.95 to Rs2.70 while PICT’s earnings declined from Rs4.69 in 2QFY18 to Rs4.56 in the current year.