Staff Reporter
Karachi
After receding for two successive days, the KSE-100 index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) reversed its trend on Thursday and edged up about 50 points in a topsy-turvy session.
Automobile, cement and fertiliser sectors bore the brunt of weak investor sentiment and most of the stocks in those sectors recorded losses. A slight recovery in global crude oil prices lent support to the bourse and aided its uptrend.
Earlier, trading kicked off on a positive note and the index surpassed the 42,500-point mark in initial deals. The uptrend continued for some time, however, selling pressure emerged towards noon and wiped off most of the gains. Nevertheless, the KSE-100 index managed to close in the green.
At close, the benchmark KSE-100 index recorded an increase of 52.48 points, or 0.12%, to close at 42,334.76 points.
Financial results of DG Khan Cement helped the company’s stock post price gains. Among technology stocks, Pakistan Telecommunication Company hit its upper circuit whereas Engro Polymer in the chemical sector touched recent highs.
The technology sector topped the volumes with trading in 108.6 million shares, followed by power firms (47.5 million) and vanaspati companies (45.2 million), the report added.
JS Global analyst Maaz Mulla said the benchmark index opened positive and touched a high of +350 points. “The market remained in the green throughout the day and closed at 42,335 (+52 points),” he said.
