Index falls by 366 points as selling pressure continues

Index falls by 366 points as selling pressure continues

KARACHI: The benchmark KSE-100 index of Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) fell by 366 points on Wednesday as market saw continuation of selling pressure in conventional top tier stocks and in addition bore pressure in roll-over heavy scrips as well.

The benchmark KSE-100 index closed at 45,363 points against previous day’s closing of 45,729 points, showing a decline of 366 points.

Analysts at Arif Habib Limited said that the market saw continuation of selling pressure in conventional top tier stocks and in addition bore pressure in roll-over heavy scrips (TRG & NETSOL) as well.

Similarly, NRL also saw significant selling that brought the stock to lower circuit a number of times, followed by recovery.

During the session, the index posted initial gains of 159 points, after which it went down by 523 points, eroding all the gains made earlier.

Banking sector saw an uptick in HBL, MCB and BOP. Cement sector stocks had LUCK posting nominal price gains. Among scrips, BYCO realized trading volume of 84.3 million shares, followed by TRG (47.3 million) and WTL (27.2 million).

Sectors contributing to the performance include E&P (-48 points), Fertilizer (-46 points), Textile (-41 points), Power (-38 points) and O&GMCs (-35 points).

Volumes declined from 718.2 million shares to 557.5 million shares (-22 percent DoD). Average traded value increased slightly by 3 percent to reach US$ 165 million as against US$ 159.2 million.

Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes include BYCO, TRG. WTL, HUMNL and MDTL, which formed 36 percent of total volumes.

Stocks that contributed positively to the index include HBL (+30 points), MEBL (+27 points), LUCK (+24 points), MCB (+14 points) and MARI (+11 points). Stocks that contributed negatively include OGDC (-32 points), ENGRO (-26 points), PSO (-24 points), NBP (-23 points) and HUBC (-22 points).