KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) continued to head north on Tuesday, with the indices accumulating gains all day long amid positive sentiments.
“Cement, steel and technology sectors led the market rally today, with cement sector witnessing brisk buying for the third consecutive session. Among banks, HBL posted significant gains in anticipation of its annual results that are scheduled to be announced tomorrow,” a report issued by Arif Habib Ltd read.
Reminiscent of yesterday, the benchmark KSE-100 Index remained in the green throughout the day, marking its intraday high at 46,884.53 after gaining 508.94 points. It settled higher by 492.36 points at 46,867.95.
Among other indices, the KMI-30 Index accumulated 1,058.51 points to close at 77,752.13, while the KSE All Share Index gathered 250.03 points, ending at 32,141.83.
The overall market volumes increased from 486.34 million shares in the previous session to 514.04 million shares (+6pc). Average traded value also inched up 2pc, from $155.6 million to $158.9 million. Hum Network Ltd (HUMNL +16.37pc), Telecard Ltd (TELE +15.08pc) Maple Leaf Cement Factory Ltd (MLCF +2.40pc) led the volume chart, exchanging 55.47 million, 55.45 million and 36.18 million shares, respectively.
Sectors that drove the benchmark index north included cement (+158.00 points), banking (+128.01 points) and fertilizer (+57.16 points). Among the companies, Lucky Cement Ltd (LUCK +114.93 points), Habib Bank Ltd (HBL +51.49 points) and MCB Bank Ltd (MCB +45.72 points) remained the top contributors.
Adding 2.70pc to its total market capitalization, the technology & communication sector ended as the session’s top performer, with NetSol Technologies Ltd (NETSOL +3.39pc), Avanceon Ltd (AVN +1.19pc) and Pakistan Telecommunication Company Ltd (PTC +2.50pc) posting decent gains.
Meanwhile, Interloop Ltd (ILP -1.00pc) announced its financial performance for the second quarter of FY21. The company’s sales appreciated 35pc YoY, resulting in 43pc increase in gross profit. ILP’s earnings per share improved from Rs1.05 in 2QFY20 to Rs1.75.
