The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a range-bound session on Tuesday, as its benchmark KSE-100 Index closed marginally lower by 74 points.
Trading at the KSE-100 remained volatile throughout the session as the index swayed both ways.
At close, the benchmark index settled at 71,359.41, down by 74.06 points or 0.10%.
On Monday, the KSE-100 gained 524 points to close above 71,000 for the first time in history.
Cement, textile, and auto sectors were among the positive contributors on Tuesday. On the other hand, commercial banks, OMCs, E&Ps closed in the red, brokerage house Ismail Iqbal Securities said in its post-market report.
In a key development, Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Tuesday that he expected the foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to close the current fiscal year at around the $9-10 billion mark.
Reserves held by the central bank are currently just over $8 billion despite making a $1-billion bond payment.
Meanwhile, Pakistan refiners have reportedly warned that the government’s plans to deregulate fuel prices could lead refiners to halt planned upgrades worth up to $6 billion and force some refineries to close.
On the political front, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Tuesday visited Lahore and then headed to Karachi. He is on a three-day visit to Pakistan, aimed at increasing bilateral ties.
The visit of the Iranian president is crucial amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East due to Gaza war and increased sanctions on Iran by the West.
On the economic front, the Pakistani rupee registered a marginal decline, depreciating 0.02% against the US dollar in the inter-bank market on Tuesday. At close, the local unit settled at 278.38, a loss of Re0.05 against the greenback, as per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
Volume on the all-share index marginally increased to 655.93 million from 655.2 million a session ago.
However, the value of shares decreased to Rs24.5 billion from Rs31.25 billion in the previous session.
K-Electric Ltd was the volume leader with 67.16 million shares, followed by Pak Int.Bulk with 46.35 million shares, and Fauji Cement with 45.92 million shares.
Shares of 371 companies were traded on Tuesday, of which 170 registered an increase, 179 recorded a fall, while 22 remained unchanged.
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