Zubair Yaqoob
Karachi
Benchmark KSE100 index topped 37K on Thursday by posting gains of 350pts during the session and ended at +337pts (unadjusted). Overall volumes also crossed 400M shares mark. Cement sector rallied on the back of recent inauguration of Bhasha Dam and optimism with respect to Housing Scheme.
PPL posted further gains for the third session in a row with high volumes. Foreign investor has largely been a major seller, whereas among local investors Insurance Companies and HNIs have taken the majority of float. Among Banking sector, HBL showed improvement by the end of session, however, small cap banks remained in the limelight in terms of volumes.
Cement sector led the volumes with 66.5M shares, followed by Technology (52.4M) and Banks (51.1M). Among scrips, JSBL topped the volumes with 31.6M shares, followed by MLCF (24.8M) and PAEL (24.1M).
The Index closed at 37,001pts as against 36,679pts showing an increase of 322pts (+0.9% DoD). Sectors contributing to the performance include E&P (+66pts), Cement (+65pts), Banks (+46pts), Auto Assembler (+41pts) and Auto Parts (+24pts). Volumes increased from 328.4mn shares to 402.4mn shares (+23% DoD). Average traded value also increased by 13% to reach US$ 96.2mn as against US$ 84.8mn.
