KSE-100 falls 0.51% in rollercoaster session

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) saw a rollercoaster session on Tuesday and the KSE-100 Index fell 0.51% owing to speculation over policy rate and verdict of polls delay case.

Investors turned pessimistic as they expect a spike in the interest rate by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) that is set to be unveiled on Tuesday after closure of market.

By the end of the day, the KSE-100 Index settled with a decrease of 202.64 points or 0.51% to close at 39,687.26 points.

KSE-100 closes below 40,000-point mark over policy rate speculation

Towards the closing hours, SC announced the verdict in polls delay case and fixed May 14 as date for Punjab assembly elections. This provided some support to the market.

Trading began with a dive as market participants rushed to offload their holdings in fear of surprise SC verdict or policy rate decision. The market hit its intra-day low at noon and rose for the remaining part of the session owing to clarity on Punjab elections.

All index heavy sectors turned read including automobile, cement, chemical, banking and oil.

A report from Arif Habib Limited stated that PSX recorded a negative session today.

“The market opened in the red and continued to trade in the same territory due to the expectation of a rate hike at Monetary Policy Committee meeting, losing 407.79 points intra-day,” it said. “Due to the Supreme Court’s decision on the provincial elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, investor participation has remained low.”

In the final trading hour, following the announcement of the decision, investors gained confidence and chose to add value to their portfolios. The mainboard saw reasonable volume, while 3rd stocks dominated the volume board, the report said.

A report from Capital Stake stated that extending the losses from the previous day, the PSX closed another session in red.

“Indices traded in red for most part of the day, while volumes surged from last close,” it said. “Investors’ confidence continued to deteriorate on uncertainty on the political front in the country and news of a possible hike in interest rate by the SBP.”

On the economic front, rupee hit all-time low in inter-bank market and closed at 287.29 against US dollar following a depreciation of Rs2.25 or 0.8%.

Sectors dragging the benchmark KSE 100 index lower included oil and gas exploration sector (72 points), banking sector (31.79 points) and investment banking sector (19.39 points).

Volume on the all-share index rose to 83.3 million from 74.4 million on Monday while the value of shares traded surged to Rs2.2 billion from Rs1.75 billion recorded in the previous session.

Telecard Limited was the volume leader with 10.9 million shares followed by Pakistan Petroleum with 6.7 million shares and Hascol with 5.8 million shares.

Shares of 295 companies were traded on Tuesday, of which 100 registered an increase, 175 recorded a fall and 20 remained unchanged.