Zubair Yaqoob
Karachi
Market traded in a narrow range Tuesday between -61pts and +106pts, closing the session +54pts. Decline in international crude oil prices brought oil stocks down, including OGDC, PPL and PSO, which kept selling pressure on the Index.
Fertilizer and Pharma sector was not much different and realized profit booking. LOTCHEM posted highest volumes in recent times to the tune of 36.2M shares.
Among Banks, HBL posted nominal gains but remained largely positive throughout the session due to dividend being part of the price.
HBL will Ex tomorrow. Auto sector performed well on the expectation of incentives to be offered in the upcoming budget. Chemical sector realized trading volumes of 47.1M shares, followed by Technology (22.9M) and Cement (21.2M).
Among scrips, LOTCHEM topped the chart, followed by JSCL (13.3M) and PRL (9.8M). The Index closed at 34,803pts as against 34,750pts showing an increase of 54pts (+0.2% DoD). Sectors contributing to the performance include Banks (+61pts), Cement (+19pts), Textile (+16pts), E&P (-39pts), Power (-23pts) and Fertilizer (-12pts). Volumes increased from 222.4mn shares as against 238.3mn shares (+7% DoD). Average traded value also increased by 5% to reach US$ 55.6mn as against US$ 53.1mn.
