Lahore stocks mixed

Share values moved both sides on Lahore Stock Exchange (LSE) on the second last day of the current trading week, but the market ended on a bullish note following interest in selective chips, especially in Mansha Group companies' shares.
Disturbed by various rumours coming from the political front, the market failed to take a single direction and moved in a zigzag way to finally finish with a marginal gain of 16.60 points, analysts said. The LSE-25 index reached 4,840.25 points versus 4,823.65 of Wednesday. There was, however, a reasonable improvement of 11.736 million shares in volume, which at the closure of the market, stood at 64.074 million shares compared with 52.338 million shares of the preceding session.
According to analysts, buying interest was seen only in selective chips while broader market was almost stagnant. At present, the market is moving on basis of scrips belonging to a particular group of companies, which means some influential elements are pushing the market in upward direction in their own benefit, a broker said. Today Adamjee Insurance and Javed Omer Vohra & Co topped gainers column while PSO and Pakistan Oil Fields came out as the prime declining stocks. Traders said that investors' interest had decreased in PSO because of reports of delay in its privatisation.
The market index is showing surge on the basis of a few scrips belonging to Mansha Group, including Adamjee Insurance, Nishat Mills, DG Khan Cement and MCB Bank etc, whereas the broader market lacks strength, Umair Butt of Dosslani Securities Ltd said.
Moreover institutions, especially banks are building up portfolio to show their high June closings, he added. A significant development is that the market is almost ignoring all political rumours, regarding the dissolution of assemblies and change in government and is apparently stable. "What I have inferred from these factors is that the market surge, which we have seen recently, is merely cosmetic and people are advised to stay away," he stated.
Overall, 139 scrips changed hands on the floor, 24 showed improvement, 40 depicted weakness while 75 stayed stable. Leading advancing stocks included Adamjee Insurance, which gained Rs 15.30, Javed Omer Vohra & Co Rs 5.95, Nishat Mills Rs 5.20, National Bank Rs 2.90 and Attock Refinery Rs 2.75.
Major losers were PSO, which lost its worth by Rs 12.00, Pakistan Oilfields Rs 9.80, Engro Chemical Rs 4.00, PPL Rs 3.80 and Allied Bank Rs 3.25. Fauji Cement and Bosicor Pakistan dominated the proceedings by turnover with 9.441 million shares and 6.647 million shares, respectively.