KARACHI: Despite foreign selling, the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Wednesday witnessed a positive trend with increasing trading activities due to fresh buying, mainly by local investors coupled with institutional support.The benchmark KSE-100 Index surged by 491.69 points or 0.63 percent and closed at 78,848.01 points. During the session, the index hit 78,890.79 points intra-day high however closed at slightly lower level due to profit taking in some stocks.

Due to investor interest, trading activities improved significantly as total daily volumes on ready counter increased to 969.768 million shares as compared to 436.672 million shares traded on Tuesday while total daily traded value on the ready counter increased to Rs 17.510 billion against previous session’s Rs 12.255 billion.

BRIndex100 added 68.01 points or 0.82 percent to close at 8,345.82 points with total daily turnover of 721.485 million shares.

BRIndex30 increased by 345.24 points or 1.29 percent to close at 27,036.99 points with total daily trading volumes of 482.206 million shares.

Foreign investors however remained net sellers of shares worth $3.157 million. Total market capitalization increased by Rs 55 billion to Rs 10.485 trillion. Out of total 443 active scrips, 259 closed in positive and 138 in negative while the value of 46 stocks remained unchanged.

WorldCall Telecom was the volume leader with 234.639 million shares and inched up by Rs 0.16 to close at Rs 1.37 followed by Pervez Ahmed Co that gained Rs 0.36 to close at Rs 1.44 with 48.686 million shares. Kohinoor Spining closed at Rs 11.41, up Rs 0.28 to close at Rs 11.41 with 45.083 million shares.

Mari Petroleum Company and Unilever Pakistan Foods were the top gainers increasing by Rs 130.69 and Rs 114.50 respectively to close at Rs 3,641.42 and Rs 17,550.00 while Nestle Pakistan and PIA Holding Company LimitedB were the top losers declining by Rs 82.33 and Rs 54.92 respectively to close at Rs 6,917.67 and Rs 854.03.

An analyst at Topline Securities said that the KSE-100 Index rose by 491 points (up 0.63 percent), closing at 78,848 level after reaching an intraday high of 534 points.

This positive momentum followed the Finance Minister’s remarks that the IMF’s $7.0 billion Extended Fund Facility approval is on track, with Pakistan nearing assurances on external financing.

Key stocks, including MARI, OGDC, EFERT, LUCK, and BAHL, drove the market’s rise, contributing plus 290 points to the index.

BR Automobile Assembler Index increased by 128.11 points or 0.73 percent to close at 17,711.90 points with total turnover of 13.474 million shares.

BR Cement Index surged by 129.93 points or 1.76 percent to close at 7,527.86 points with 71.080 million shares.

BR Commercial Banks Index gained 70.89 points or 0.33 percent to close at 21,804.73 points with 25.810 million shares.

BR Power Generation and Distribution Index inched up by 33.21 points or 0.18 percent to close at 18,752.06 points with 16.072 million shares.

BR Oil and Gas Index added 95.35 points or 1.33 percent to close at 7,258.02 points with 44.989 million shares.

BR Tech. & Comm. Index soared by 52.28 points or 1.32 percent to close at 4,015.57 points with 331.899 million shares.

Mubashir Anis Naviwala at JS Global Capital said bullish activity was observed in the market, primarily driven by sideboard stocks.

However, some activity was also witnessed in the Oil & Gas and Banking sectors, leading to a 491 point increase in the KSE-100 index.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024