Bearish sentiments prevailed on the Lahore Stock Exchange (LSE) on Thursday and the equities registered decline amid descending trading turnover due to lacking interest on the part of investors who remained on the sideline. The LSE-25 index was declined by 21.20 points and was closed at 3175.21 points against 3196.41 points of last Friday, while transaction volume was decreased to 969,974 shares compared with previous volume of 1.849 million shares.
The market was opened on a depressed note and stayed in negative zone almost throughout the day. The investors remained reluctant in taking fresh positions that resulted in low trading volume. Engro Corporation, Fauji Fertiliser Bin Qasim, Fatima Fertiliser, Pakistan Oil Fields, Attock Refinery, D.G. Khan Cement, Lucky Cement, Arif Habib Corporation, Nishat Mills, Nishat Chunian, Engro Foods and National Bank remained under selling pressure.
However, MCB Bank, Habib Bank, United Bank, Bank Alfalah, Askari Bank, Fauji Fertiliser, OGDC, PSO, PPL and Lotte Pakistan PTA registered buying that helped market avert more declines. The losers were more than the gainers, as out of a total of 99 active issues, 15 companies posted gains, 19 went down, while 65 remained unchanged at their previous closing levels.
Among gainers, MCB Bank was improved by Rs 4.14, Habib Bank was appreciated by Rs 2.25, while Fauji Fertiliser and OGDC gained 80-paisa and 47-paisa, respectively. In the minus column, Engro Corporation lost Rs 4.18, Pakistan Oil Fields was declined by Rs 3.30, Attock Refinery was depreciated by Rs 2.87, while Nishat Mills was down by Rs 1.40. National Bank with trading of 153,260 shares topped the volume leaders followed by Bank Alfalah with 131,252 shares.