KSE-100 succumbs to profit-taking, falls 0.13%

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed profit-taking as the benchmark KSE-100 saw all its intra-day gains erased to end negative on Monday.

The benchmark index kicked off the session on a positive note, as the index surged 369 points to record an intra-day high of 46,969.46. However, profit-taking was witnessed late in the session, which pushed the index down to 46,428.95, a decrease of 172 points.

At close, the KSE-100 Index settled at 46,539.59, a drop of 61.95 points or 0.13%.

Last week, the benchmark KSE-100 index surged by 2,156.96 points on a week-on-week basis and crossed the 46,000 psychological level to close at 46,601.54.

PSX ends week on positive note, KSE-100 inches up 0.25%

"With the commencement of the results season and clarity on the political front, certain sectors and scrips are expected to stay in the limelight," said Arif Habib Limited in a report.

"Furthermore, we are expecting the rollover of Chinese loans worth $2.3 billion and IMF negotiations, which will help bolster foreign exchange reserves. Any dip in oil prices should also have a positive impact on the market," it said.

On the economic front, it was reported that the new government of Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) has decided to resume talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington from today.

On a corporate front, Waves Singer Pakistan Limited, in a notification, announced that the National Bank of Pakistan has approved financing of Rs1,500 million to kick start its housing project.

Sectors dragging the benchmark index downwards included banking sector (121.9 points), technology and communication (45.32 points) and cement (39.84 points).

Volume on the all-share index decreased to 255.61 million from 365.79 million on Friday. However, the value of shares marginally improved to Rs9.64 billion from Rs9.13 billion recorded in the previous session.

G3 Technologies was the volume leader with 21.23 million shares, followed by Cnergyico PK with 17.79 million shares, and WorldCall Telecom Limited with 15.46 million shares.

Shares of 336 companies were traded on Monday, of which 107 registered an increase, 199 recorded a fall, and 30 remained unchanged.