KARACHI: Bullish sentiments prevailed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday, as investors reacted positively to media reports that Pakistan has successfully completed 21 out of 27 points outlined by Financial Action Task Force, and that any chance of blacklisting was off the table.
Moreover, the announcement of financial results announcement also kept the investors interest alive.
Global equity markets, on the other hand, put up a mixed show, whereas crude oil prices slipped lower from the previous close; WTI crude price declining 1.86pc to $39.12 while Brent crude price falling 1.55pc to $41.42.
The benchmark KSE-100 Index remained in the green throughout the day, touching its intraday high at 41,876.79 after accumulating 610.79 points. It settled higher by 584.47 points at 41,850.47. Among other indices, the KMI-30 Index gathered 1,459.90 points to end at 67,394.62, while the KSE All Share Index added 321.25 points, closing at 29,439.51.
The overall market volumes increased from 354.5 million shares in the previous session to 487.2 million shares (+37pc). Average traded value also increased by 37pc, from $96.9 million to $133.6 million. The volume chart was led by cement stocks; Maple Leaf Cement Factory Ltd (MLCF +4.13pc), Power Cement Ltd (POWER +8.39pc) and Fauji Cement Company Ltd (FCCL +7.46pc). The scrips exchanged 48.50 million, 38.31 million and 30.97 million shares, respectively.
Sectors that drove the benchmark index north included cement (+229.69 points), technology & communication (+53.66 points) and oil & gas marketing (+44.61 points).
Among the companies, Lucky Cement Ltd (LUCK +120.67 points), Dawood Hercules Corp Ltd (DAWH +37.53 points) and Hub Power Company Ltd (HUBC +36.57 points) remained the top contributors.
Adding 5.02pc to its cumulative market capitalization, the cement sector ended as the session’s top performer, with LUCK (+6.23pc), Bestway Cement Ltd (BWCL +2.01pc) and DG Khan Cement Company Ltd (DGKC +3.34pc) posting decent gains.
On the financial side, United Bank Ltd (UBL -2.73pc) announced earnings per share of Rs3.81 for the third quarter of FY20 (Rs3.97 last year); Ferozsons Laboratories Ltd (FEROZ -1.25pc) declared an EPS of Rs3.65 for 1QFY21 (Rs2.75 in 1QFY20); Highnoon Laboratories Ltd (HINOON +3.19pc) recorded an EPS of Rs9.43 for 3QFY20 (Rs6.29 last year); Lucky Cement Ltd (LUCK +6.23pc) registered an EPS of Rs6.89 for 1QFY21 (Rs2.96 Last year); whereas Philip Morris Pakistan Ltd (PMPK -0.41pc) posted an EPS of Rs9.35 for 3QFY20, (Rs12.70 in 3QFY19).
