KARACHI: Investors of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a jittery session on Wednesday, with the indices swaying both ways in search of a clear direction before closing marginally in green.
Global equity markets, on the other hand, showed a positive trend, whereas crude oil prices also moved north from the previous close; WTI crude price rising 3.75pc to $42.91, while Brent crude price increasing 3.55pc to $45.16.
“The market started on a positive note mainly on the back of exploration & production sector, which accumulated hefty gains due to surge in international crude prices. However, market fears over developing political wrangling between the government and opposition kept the index in check,” a report issued by Arif Habib Ltd read. “Cement sector saw selling pressure amid expectation of a decline in monthly despatches (based on the first week of November), whereas fertilizer, oil & gas marketing and banking sectors remained subdued due to somber investor sentiment.”
MARKET SUMMARY
The benchmark KSE-100 Index followed a volatile trajectory on Wednesday, recording its intraday high at 41,330.49 (+177.44 points) and low at 40,900.03 (-253.02 points). It ended higher by 44.27 points at 41,197.32.
Among other indices, the KMI-30 Index gained 168.56 points to close at 66,104.49, while the KSE All Share Index settled flat (+2.70 points) at 28,864.16.
The overall market volumes contracted from 355.98 million shares in the previous session to 244.23 million shares (-31pc). Average traded value also declined by 43pc, from $95.5 million to $54.6 million. BankIslami Pakistan Ltd (BIPL +8.78pc), TRG Pakistan Ltd (TRG +2.59pc) and K-Electric Ltd (KEL -3.25pc) led the volume chart, exchanging 31.52 million, 25.04 million and 16.32 million shares, respectively.
Sectors that kept the benchmark index in green included oil & gas exploration (+145.40 points), banking (+37.03 points) and technology & communication (+24.76 points). Among the companies, Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDC +64.54 points), Pak Petroleum Ltd (PPL +41.4 points) and Habib Bank Ltd (HBL +39.75 points) remained the top contributors.
Adding 3.05pc to its cumulative market capitalization, the oil & gas exploration sector ended as the session’s top performer, with Mari Petroleum Company Ltd (MARI +1.57pc), OGDC (+3.84pc), Pakistan Oilfields Ltd (POL +2.35pc) and PPL (+2.77pc) posting decent gains.
Meanwhile, in a notification to the exchange, TPL Properties Ltd (TPLP -0.21pc) informed that it has purchased a land through its wholly-owned subsidiary measuring 10,002 square yards. The company plans to use this property to develop a technology park in Sindh. The timeline for the completion of the project is anticipated to be two years, which includes planning and designing phase.
