Equities on Friday moved both ways on Lahore Stock Exchange and ended in positive zone amid decreased turnover due to cautious approach on the part of investors ahead of weekend. The LSE-25 index gained 10.98 points at 3181.16 against 3170.18 points of Thursday, while transaction volume reducted to 1.877 million shares as compared to 2.309 million shares.
The market opened on a positive sign and stayed in green zone during first trading session. However, before closing of first session, the investors started offloading of their holdings. During second session, the market witnessed fresh buying in select shares. That helped the market. Investors' interest was seen in Engro Corporation, Fauji Fertiliser, Thal, Pakistan Oilfields, PSO, OGDC, DG Khan Cement, Arif Habib Corporation, Habib Bank, Nimir Industrial Chemical, World Telecom, and PTCL.
Profit taking was observed in Adamjee Insurance, National Bank, United Bank, MCB Bank, Bank of Punjab, Askari Bank, Lucky Cement, Dewan Salman Fibre, and Habib Sugar. The advancing stocks were ahead of declining ones, as out of 96 active issues, 28 companies posted gains and 14 went down, while 54 companies closed at their previous levels.
Engro Corporation improved by Rs 2.03, Thal appreciated by Rs 1.85, Fauji Fertiliser gained Rs 1.72, Pakistan Oilfields was up by Rs 1.35 and PSO gained Rs 1.12. Adamjee Insurance declined by Rs 1.24, National Bank lost 51 paisa, United Bank was down by 37-paisa and MCB Bank lost 35 paisa. Bank of Punjab was the market leader whose 316,481 shares changed hands followed by Arif Habib Corporation with 210,802 shares.