KARACHI: The stock market likely to stay positive during the next week owing to strong financial results of corporate entities.
Analysts at Arif Habib Limited hoped that the market to remain positive in the upcoming week.
With the continuation of a strong result season, certain sectors and scrips are expected to stay under limelight.
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The benchmark KSE-100 of Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) is currently trading at a PER of 5.1x (2022) compared to Asia Pac regional average of 13.9x while offering a dividend yield of 8.5 per cent versus 2.3 per cent offered by the region.
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The market commenced the week on a positive note as the IMF Board approved the $1 billion disbursement.
Additionally, the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) approved the much awaited Textile Policy after incorporating certain changes.
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However, the market corrected midweek as oil prices crossed $90 per barrel for the first time since 2014. Furthermore, Pakistan’s fiscal deficit contracted 2.1 per cent (PKR1.37trn) during first half of the current fiscal year.
The market closed at 46,079 points, gaining 170 points (+0.4 per cent) WoW.
Sector-wise positive contributions came from i) Fertilizers (159 points), ii) Automobile Assembler (55 points), iii) Oil & Gas Exploration Companies (40 points), iv) Commercial Banks (38 points), and v) Power Generation & Distribution (34 points).
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Whereas, sectors which contributed negatively were i) Technology & Communication (66 points), ii) Cement (49 points), iii) Oil & Gas Marketing Companies (45 points, iv) Insurance (36 points) and Cable & Electrical Goods (20 points). Scrip-wise positive contributors were ENGRO (86 points), DAWH (61 points), MEBL (59 points), EPCL (34 points) and FFC (33 points). Meanwhile, scrip-wise negative contribution came from PSO (39 points), AICL (35 points), SYS (33 points), MCB (21 points) and PAEL (20 points).
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Foreign selling continued this week, clocking-in at USD 5.9 million compared to a net sell of USD 4.4 million last week. Major selling was witnessed in Technology (USD 3.2 million) and All other sectors (USD 1.6 million).
On the local front, buying was reported by Other Organizations (USD 11.1 million) followed by Individuals (USD 3.1 million). Average volumes clocked-in at 207 million shares (down by 28 per cent WoW) while average value traded settled at USD 46 million (down by 16 per cent WoW).
