KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) changed its path on Friday, with the indices ending the last trading session of the month in the green.
Global markets, on the other hand, displayed a lacklustre performance following a dip in crude oil prices; WTI crude oil price was down 2.94pc at $32.72, while Brent crude price slipped 2.33pc at $35.19.
The benchmark KSE-100 Index remained in the green zone throughout the session, registering its intraday high at 34,048.56 after gaining 353.14 points. It closed higher by 235.81 points at 33,931.23.
Among other indices, the KMI-30 Index accumulated 386.48 points to settle at 55,171.67, while the KSE All Share Index gathered 128.38 points, ending at 24,435.18. Of the total traded shares, 171 advanced and 118 declined.
The overall market volumes improved from 14.8 million shares in the previous session to 233.02 million shares (+20pc). Average traded value also surged by 39pc, from $45.1 million to $62.4 million. Unity Foods Limited (UNITY), Hascol Petroleum Limited (HASCOL) and TRG Pakistan Limited (TRG) led the volume chart, exchanging 25.85 million, 19.55 million and 16.48 million shares, respectively.
Sectors that brought positivity to the KSE-100 Index included oil & gas exploration (67.93 points), cement (43.28 points) and power generation & distribution (38.98 points). Among the companies, Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDC 52.79 points), Hub Power Company Limited (HUBC 32.15 points) and Lucky Cement Limited (LUCK 31.18 points) remained the top contributors to the index.
The technology sector gained 2.55pc in its cumulative market cap, with Systems Limited (SYS 6.27pc), NetSol Technologies Limited (NETSOL 4.41pc), Avanceon Limited (AVN 2.29pc) and TRG Pakistan Limited (TRG 3.14pc) closing with decent gains.
In a notification to the exchange, The Searle Company Limited (SEARL -1.35pc) announced that it has entered into a licensing and marketing agreement with Beximco Pharmaceuticals, Bangladesh. Beximco is the world’s first company to develop and introduce the generic of Remdesivir for treatment of Covid-19.
Meanwhile, Abbot Laboratories (Pakistan) Limited (ABOT +7.50pc) declared its financial performance for the first quarter of FY20. The company’s sales rose by 11.7pc YoY, which pushed its gross profit margin from 30pc to 36pc. The company reported a net profit of Rs862.51 million for the period under review. Its earnings per share surged from Rs3.35 last year to Rs8.81.
