Led by second and third-tier stocks, KSE-100 share index breached psychological barrier of 19,000 on Thursday to close at historic high of 19,034.53 points against 18,982.42 points Tuesday. The local bourse witnessed bullish trend and gained 52.11 points on the fourth day of the week. The benchmark-100 index witnessed intra-day high of 19,102.00 and lowest level of 18,982.42.
"With the emerging clarity on timely elections, investors continued to take fresh positions. Fauji Fertiliser maintained rally after its result announcement. Investors remained skeptical on Engro Corp on gas supply issues," commented Samar Iqbal, an analyst at Topline Securities. She said telecom sector remained under pressure after heavy penalty by CCP. Fauji Cement remained the volume leader with 26 million shares changing hands and price rising by 3 percent.
Ahsan Mehanti, another analyst commented that Pakistan stocks closed record high post major earning announcements for quarter end session at KSE led by second and third-tier stocks on strong valuations. "Bullish sentiment prevailed amid thin trade after CPI inflation for April stood at 5.8pc. Higher local cement prices, recovery in global commodities and easing political concerns played a catalyst role in bullish activity at KSE amid concerns for dismal earning outlook for banking sector," he said.
The Market Capitalisation followed suit and moved up by Rs 23.39 billion to close at Rs 4.687 trillion from Rs 4.663 trillion. The trading side witnessed immense pressure and the volume stood at 147.361 million shares against 195.003 million shares. Out of total 395 active scrips, 225 registered increase, 148 decrease, while only 22 stocks remained unchanged.
Rafhan Maize SPOT and Nestle Pak XD were the top gainers with share prices increasing by Rs 222.62 and Rs 70.00 to close at Rs 4675.16 and Rs 6650.00, respectively. Bata Pak XD and Island Textile were the top losers. Their share prices fell by Rs 20.28 and Rs 17.67 to close at Rs 2250.00 and Rs 808.00, respectively. Half of the companies available in "Top Ten" chart witnessed growth in their share prices while the rest lost their strength. Fauji Cement again succeeded to gain the position of "Volume Leader" and with an increase of 24 paisa, it closed at Rs 9.10 on a turnover of some 25.93 million.
On the contrary, TRG Pakistan lost 64 paisa to close at Rs 10.18 on some 19.58 million shares. PTCLA fell by 46 to close at Rs 17.46 on a volume of some 7.66 million shares. Wateen Telecom shed 24 paisa to close at Rs 5.04 on some 6.92 million shares. Maple Leaf gained 25 paisa to close at Rs 18.79 on some 6.24 million shares. Soneri Bank went up by 41 paisa to close at Rs 7.00 on 5.45 million shares.
Engro Corporation fell by Rs 2.22 to close at Rs 132.02 on a turnover of some 5.12 million shares. Dawood Hercules witnessed bullish trend, moving up by 72 paisa to close at Rs 55.48 on some 4.75 million shares. Jahangir Siddiqui Company which succeeded to book a place in Top Ten after many days, shed 27 paisa to close at Rs 11.29 on 3.26 million shares. The last one among the Top Ten was Fauji Fertiliser which gained 74 paisa to close at Rs 112.47 on a turnover of 3.13 million shares.