KARACHI: Pakistan Stock Exchange on Wednesday witnessed a bullish trend and closed on strong positive note with healthy gains on optimism surrounding the imminent approval of the IMF programme.

The benchmark KSE-100 Index surged by 515.34 points or 0.66 percent and crossed 78,000 psychological level to close at 78,260.86 points. The index hit 78,457.37 points intraday high however closed at slightly lower level due to profit taking in some stocks.

Trading activity also improved as total daily volumes on ready counter increased to 552.564 million shares as compared to 380.717 million shares traded on Tuesday while total daily traded value on the ready counter increased to Rs 14.590 billion against previous session’s Rs 11.237 billion.

BRIndex100 added 94.74 points or 1.16 percent to close at 8,280.20 points with total daily turnover of 465.529 million shares.

BRIndex30 increased by 294.09 points or 1.14 percent to close at 26,002.96 points with total daily trading volumes of 258.585 million shares.

Foreign investors however remained net sellers of shares worth $600,471. The market capitalization increased by Rs 81 billion to Rs 10.423 trillion. Out of total 453 active scrips, 289 closed in positive and 119 in negative while the value of 45 stocks remained unchanged.

Kohinoor Spining was the volume leader with 62.921 million shares and increased by Rs 1.02 to close at Rs 11.23 followed by Power Cement that gained Rs 0.84 to close at Rs 5.79 with 41.961 million shares. Yousuf Weaving inched up by Rs 0.36 to close at Rs 6.82 with 37.366 million shares.

Unilever Pakistan Foods and Al-Abbas Sugar Mills were the top gainers increasing by Rs 219.46 and Rs 32.55, respectively to close at Rs 17,819.46 and Rs 568.10 while Hoechst Pakistan and Ismail Industries were the top losers declining by Rs 125.90 and Rs 61.50, respectively to close at Rs 1,626.11 and Rs 1,537.50.

An analyst at Topline Securities said Pakistan stock market soared by 515 points, or 0.66 percent, wrapping up the day at a strong 78,261 points. The index showcased impressive volatility, peaking at 78,457 and dipping to 77,969 points during the session.

The action was driven by a surge in the Fertilizer and Banking sectors, with heavyweights NBP, FFC, UBL, EFERT, and HMB fuelling a notable 249 point boost.

BR Automobile Assembler Index increased by 130.61 points or 0.75 percent to close at 17,507.09 points with total turnover of 6.374 million shares.

BR Cement Index added 93.36 points or 1.28 percent to close at 7,412.24 points with 78.663 million shares.

BR Commercial Banks Index surged by 234.48 points or 1.06 percent to close at 22,424.05 points with 29.454 million shares.

BR Power Generation and Distribution Index lost 6.65 points or 0.04 percent to close at 17,921.23 points with 22.953 million shares.

BR Oil and Gas Index gained 28.51 points or 0.41 percent to close at 7,022.62 points with 14.194 million shares.

BR Tech. & Comm. Index inched up by 18.73 points or 0.46 percent to close at 4,047.17 points with 118.981 million shares.

Mohammed Waqar Iqbal at JS Global Capital said that optimism surrounding the imminent approval of the IMF program spurred bullish momentum, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index remaining in positive territory throughout the session, closing at 78,261, up 515 points.

Buying interest was primarily concentrated in the Banking, Fertilizer, and Oil & Gas sectors.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024