The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed another range-bound session on Monday as the KSE-100 closed lower by 283 points after late-session selling erased the gains the index had made during intra-day trading.
The KSE-100 started the session positive, hitting an intra-day high of 79,214.28.
However, the bears regained their grip in the market in the second half and pushed the index back below 79,000.
At close, the benchmark index settled at 78,615.00, down by 282.72 points or 0.36%.
“The equity market ended on a negative note, with the benchmark index experiencing volatility throughout the session as investors continue to wait for a major catalyst, especially positive news from the International Monetary Fund (IMF),” brokerage house Ismail Iqbal Securities said in its post-market report.
The decline on Monday was largely attributed to MTL, HUBC, UBL, HBL, and MEBL, which together accounted for a 354-point drop, Topline Securities said.
On Friday, the KSE-100 closed nearly flat after profit-taking wiped out more than 350 points the index had gained during the opening hours of trading.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has not yet included Pakistan on the agenda of its Executive Board calendar meetings scheduled till September 18.
According to the Fund’s website, the IMF updated the schedule of the executive board meeting set to be held on September 9, 13 and 18, but Pakistan’s 37-month Extended Fund Facility Arrangement (EFF) of about $7 billion on the agenda is not included.
Pakistan’s pharmaceutical company BF Biosciences Limited (BFBL) secured approval from the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) for its brownfield expansion.
The development was shared by its parent Ferozsons Laboratories Limited in a notice to the PSX.
Millat Tractors Limited (MTL), Pakistan’s largest tractor manufacturer, reported a profit-after-tax (PAT) of Rs10.64 billion for the financial year ended June 30, 2024, a jump of nearly 167% year-on-year.
The company registered consolidated earnings of Rs4 billion in 2023, showed MTL’s latest financial results.
Dawood Lawrencepur Limited (DLL) informed that the proposed sale of Tenaga Generasi Limited, an independent power producer (IPP) with a 49.5MW wind power plant, to Artistic Milliners (Private) Limited will not proceed due to unmet conditions within the specified timeframe.
The company, engaged in renewable energy solutions, informed this to its stakeholders in a notice to the PSX.
Meanwhile, Lucky Core Industries Limited (LCI), previously known as ICI Pakistan Limited, completed the acquisition of a manufacturing facility owned by Pfizer Pakistan Limited in Karachi alongside certain assets.
Globally, Asian share markets slipped on Monday as worries about US and Chinese growth weighed on sentiment, though US and European stock futures did manage a bounce while bond yields came off their lows.
Chinese blue chips dropped 1.0% to seven-month lows, having already shed 2.7% last week.
Japan’s Nikkei bore the brunt of the early selling as tech stocks declined, losing another 0.8% on top of a near 6% slide last week.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 1.2%, after shedding 2.25% last week, while South Korea’s market fell 0.2%.
On a steadier note, S&P 500 futures rallied 0.4% and Nasdaq futures 0.6%, following Friday’s slide.
The Pakistani rupee registered a marginal decline against the US dollar, depreciating 0.05% in the inter-bank market on Monday. At close, the currency settled at 278.7, a loss of Re0.13 against the US dollar.
Volume on the all-share index decreased to 491.12 million from 743.07 million on Thursday.
The value of shares declined to Rs10.12 billion from Rs12.90 billion in the previous session.
WorldCall Telecom was the volume leader with 86 million shares, followed by Kohinoor Spining with 42.93 million shares, and Pace (Pak) Ltd with 37.26 million shares.
Shares of 443 companies were traded on Monday, of which 155 registered an increase, 228 recorded a fall, while 60 remained unchanged.
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