BRIndex100 snaps losing streak

After opening in negative zone, Pakistan Stock Exchange rebounded on the back of fresh buying that supported the index to close in positive with healthy gains Thursday. BRIndex100 gained 77.31 points or 1.68 percent to close at 4,666.30 points. BRIndex100 touched intraday high of 4,677.03 and intraday low of 4,545.70 points. Volumes stood at 165.719 million shares. BRIndex30 increased by 445.01 points or 1.87 percent to 24,210.06 points with a turnover of 124.662 million shares.
The benchmark KSE-100 index surged by 608.73 points or 1.42 percent to 43,528.51 points. Trading activity also improved as daily volumes on the ready counter increased to 190.647 million shares as compared to 188.066 million shares traded Wednesday. The market capitalization increased by Rs 115 billion to Rs 9.038 trillion. Out of total 361 active scrips, 226 closed in positive, 119 in negative while the value of 16 stocks remained unchanged.
Dost Steels was the volume leader with 19.366 million shares. It gained Re 0.49 to close at Rs 13.46 followed by Azgard Nine that lost Re 0.56 to close at Rs 17.59 with 16.216 million shares. Nestle Pakistan and Unilever Foods were the top gainers with Rs 574.01 and Rs 398.80, respectively to close at Rs 12,074.00 and Rs 8,900.00. Murree Brewery and Service Industries were the top losers with Rs 47.92 and Rs 27.09, respectively to close at Rs 910.50 and Rs 822.91.
BR Commercial Banks Index increased by 102.56 points or 1.17 percent to close at 8,886.15 points with total turnover of 13.433 million shares. BR Cement Index gained 71.57 points or 1.3 percent to close at 5,556.74 points with 20.619 million shares.
BR Oil and Gas Index closed at 5,218.83 points, up 84.27 points or 1.64 percent with 11.199 million shares. BR Tech. & Comm. Index inched up 15.1 points or 1.24 percent to close at 1,228.30 points with 10.878 million shares. BR Power Generation and Distribution Index gained 59.98 points or 0.95 percent to close at 6,383.58 points with 5.446 million shares.
An analyst at Topline Securities said that Pakistan market opened in negative zone on back of overnight news of Supreme Court decision against former PM Nawaz Sharif, disqualifying him from heading the ruling party PMLN. The apex court has ruled that all steps taken, orders passed, directions given and documents issued by Sharif since his disqualification last year (July 28, 2017) will be deemed to have been nullified.
Value buyers sensing bargain level and taking cue from news flow PML-N Chairman Raja Zafarul Haq calling on the chief election commissioner to re-issue tickets to the party''s Senate candidates concluded that there is likelihood of Senate election taking place on time resorted to across the board buying.
This led market to stage a strong bounce back, snapping the three-day loosing streak to close at 43,528 points, up 608 points or 1.42 percent. Later in the day ECP announced that PML-N candidates can contest Senate Elections as independent candidates. Participation increased with improvement in sentiments despite upcoming FATF decision. Traded value was up 7 percent and traded volumes were up 1.0 percent.