Equity market gains 386 points as banks attract investors

Equity market gains 386 points as banks attract investors

KARACHI: The equity market gained 386 points on Tuesday as banking sector attracted attention of investors.

The benchmark KSE-100 index of Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) closed at 34,408 points as against 34,022 points showing an increase of +386 points.

Analysts at Arif Habib Limited said that the market went up today on the back of banking sector that gained prominence post Eid.

Yesterday’s performance of Index also came largely from Banking sector and today’s continuation gave investors the confidence to invest more.

A couple of factors that helped Investors make a buying stance on Banking sector have been a gradual increase in secondary market PIB yields since last month as well as annual average inflation for FY20 in excess of 10 percent that diminishes the prospect of further rate cut and therefore a renewed interest in Banking sector.

Interestingly, international crude prices were up as well overnight and during today’s market session, however, E&P stocks didn’t pay heed to the price increase and saw selling pressure. Cement sector stocks also showed some signs of revival but remained range bound.

Banking sector stocks led the volumes with 50 million shares, followed by Technology (24.3 million) and Cement (17.3 million). Among scrips, PAEL realized trading volume of 14.2 million, followed by TRG (12.5 million) and HASCOL (12.3 million).

Sectors contributing to the performance include Banks (+332 points), E&P (+38 points), Autos (+13 points), Fertilizer -22 points), Pharma (-18 points) and Inv Banks (-14 points).

Volumes increased from 198.1 million shares to 220.6 million shares (+11 percent DoD). Average traded value also increased by 19 percent to reach US$ 52.3 million as against US$ 44.2 million.

Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes include PAEL, TRG, HASCOL, BOP and UNITY, which formed 28 percent of total volumes.

Stocks that contributed positively to the index include MCB (+89 points)a, UBL (+82 points), HBL (+63 points), BAFL (+35 points) and POL (+29 points). Stocks that contributed negatively include FFC (-17 points), DAWH (-14 points), SEARL (-11 points), HMB (-11 points), and OGDC (-7 points).