KARACHI: Indices of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) did not welcome the resumption of trade activities after a week-long break, and displayed a lacklustre performance on Thursday.
According to market analysts, the benchmark KSE-100 Index started the day on negative note mainly on the back of international crude prices, which slipped overnight to trade near $31.5 per bbl — approximately 4pc down from the level seen before the holidays (last Thursday).
“Cement and banking sectors remained under pressure throughout the session as they remained in search of a positive trigger,” said a report issued by Arif Habib Ltd. “On the other hand, off-board scrips (TRG, UNITY, PAEL, HUMNL) remained in the limelight along with the pharma sector (SEARL and GLAXO), which has been performing well for quite some time.”
Losing 238.21 points, the benchmark KSE-100 Index recorded its intraday low at 33,598.40. Amid lack of a clear direction, it closed lower by 141.19 points at 33,695.42.
Among other indices, the KMI-30 Index dropped 315.51 points to end at 54,785.19, while the KSE All Share Index lost 73.94 points, settling at 24,306.80. Of the total traded shares, 133 advanced and 141 declined.
The overall market volumes increased from 147.2 million shares in the previous session to 194.74 million shares. Average traded value also surged by 25pc, from $36.4 million to $45.1 million. TRG Pakistan Limited (TRG +7.50pc), Hascol Petroleum Limited (HASCOL +1.59pc) and Unity Foods Limited (UNTIY +8.14pc) topped the volume chart, exchanging 24.75 million, 24.42 million and 21.17 million shares, respectively.
Sectors that dragged the benchmark index lower included banking (-80.26 points), oil & gas exploration (-59.50 points) and fertilizer (-24.39 points). Among the companies, Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDC -28.61 points), United Bank Ltd (UBL -28.23 points) and Pak Petroleum Ltd (PPL -27.48 points) dented the index the most.
The pharmaceutical sector added 2.31pc in its cumulative market capitalization, with GlaxoSmithKline (Pakistan) Ltd (GLAXO +7.03pc), The Searle Company Limited (SEARL +6.38pc) and IBL HealthCare Limited (IBLHL +5.16pc) accumulating decent gains.
Meanwhile, Avanceon Limited (AVN +7.48pc) declared its financial performance for the first quarter of FY20. The company’s profit appreciated from Rs84.41 million to Rs282.53 million despite a 6pc decline in sales. It’s earnings per share increased from Rs0.44 in 1QFY19 to Rs1.47.
