The KSE-100 index on Monday lost 82.28 points and closed at 12,394.49 points due to selling on both local and foreign fronts. The offshore investors remained on the selling side with a fresh outflow of $1.3 million from the equity market. The trading remained extremely low and the volume at ready counter declined to 32.8 20 million shares as compared to 126.254 million shares of previous week.
Market capitalisation declined by Rs 18 billion to Rs 3.271 trillion. Of 326 active scrips, 142 closed in negative and 85 in positive, while values of 99 scrips remained unchanged. Fatima Fertiliser was the volume leader with 2.383 million shares, and lost Re 0.21 to close at Rs 16.74. Fauji Fertiliser Bin Qasim and Engro Corporation declined by Re 0.24 and Rs 3.08 to close at Rs 47.28 and Rs 148.51 with 1.526 million shares and 0.915 million shares respectively.
Pak Reinsurance gained Re 0.12 to close at Rs 15.58 with 1.732 million shares. NIB Bank (R) closed at the last day''s closing level of Re 0.01 with 1.641 million shares. WorldCall Telecom also closed at the last day''s closing level at Rs 1.81 with 1.314 million shares. Arif Habib Corp lost Re 0.19 to close at Rs 28.32 with 1.223 million shares. Hub Power increased by Re 0.56 to close at Rs 39.62 with 1.106 million shares.
Bank Al Falah gained Re 0.03 to close at Rs 29.07 with 1.034 million shares, and NBP lost Re 0.64 to close at Rs 54.18 with 0.899 million shares. Nestle Pakistan and Bhanero Textile were highest gainers, increasing by Rs 12.06 and Rs 11.64 to close at Rs 4192.31 and Rs 244.52 respectively, while Unilever Pak and Colgate Palmolive were worst losers, declining by Rs 15.41 and Rs 9.14 to close at Rs 5833.57 and Rs 726.86 respectively.
Hasnain Asghar Ali at Aziz Fidahusein Co said that the deteriorating law and order situation, roll-over pressure amid extremely low turnover, and dumping by offshore participants, realising more than Rs 2 billion worth main board stocks, offloaded previous week''s and counting, seemingly exhausted the local syndicate, constituting brokerage houses and financial institutions, thus disallowing aggressive resistance to the selling pressure.
Although targeted low volume strength did restrict, otherwise a louder decline in the values of KSE-100, the singled out stock, however, witnessed massive price erosion, mainly due to low volumes, and absence of buyers on intervals, thus duly magnifying the losses towards the closing bell. He said that growing reservations regarding suspended IMF program, the FBR''s claim regarding revenue collection numbers, unclear US stance regarding dispatch of committed amount, and various financial and economic matters suggest caution.