Pakistan Stock Exchange remained in the grip of panic selling and the PSX had to trigger Market Halt option three times during the outgoing week ended on March 13, 2020. BRIndex100 decreased by 259.17 points on week-on-week basis to close at 3,715.13 points. Average daily volumes stood at 249.584 million shares.
BRIndex30 declined by 1488.79 points to close at 18,381.47 points with average daily turnover of 190.050 million shares. KSE-100 index plunged by 2,158.79 points or 5.6 percent to close at 36,060.88 points. Daily trading volumes on ready counter slightly improved by 9.0 percent to 264.25 million shares as compared to previous week's average of 242.54 million shares. Average daily trading value increased by 28.0 percent to Rs 12.77 billion.
Total market capitalization declined by Rs 361 billion to stand at Rs 6.795 trillion. An analyst at AKD Securities said that the KSE-100 index underwent gyrations largely from a trifecta of risks, including the opening salvo in global crude price war (Brent/Arab Light falling 30 percent, recovering 6 percent) initiated by Saudi Arabia following the breakdown of OPEC talks, spread of COVID-19 (flagged by the WHO as a global pandemic) and US$ jumping 3.2 percent against the Pak Rupee, pulling the KSE-100 index lower by 5.7 percent on week-on-week basis to close at 36,061 points.
Gainers amongst AKD coverage universe were PIOC (up 17.4 percent), CHCC (up 9.8 percent), INDU (up 6.8 percent) and NCL (up 5.0 percent), whereas laggards dragging the index lower were POL (down 21.2 percent), PPL (down 16.0 percent), BOP (down 12.3 percent) and MEBL (down 12.1 percent).
"As if the Coronavirus wasn't enough of a threat to global financial markets, the outcome of the OPEC plus meeting brought international crude oil prices crashing down, unleashing bears on the already struggling global equities," an analyst at JS Global Capital said. The Pakistan equity market alone saw three market halts during the week as panic sent investors on a selling spree. Not surprisingly, the KSE-100 marked the worst weekly fall since August-2019 as the index closed at 36,061 levels, having bled out 5.6 percent during the week.
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