Stocks plummet by 400 points in dull trading

KARACHI: Pakistan stocks fell by 400 points on Thursday as the market recorded dull trading during the day.

The benchmark KSe-100 index of Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) closed at 45,940 points as against previous day’s closing of 46,340 points, showing a decrease of 400 points.

Analysts at Arif Habib Limited said that the market remained dull today as sustainability concerns arise over physiological level of 46,000.

Cement sector stayed under pressure due to higher international coal prices. In the fertilizer sector, EFERT remained in the limelight as it announced financial result in line with market expectations.

Index level of 46,000 was unable to digest by the investors as profit taking was observed across the board in the last trading hour, which led the market to close in the red zone.

Sectors contributing to the performance include Banks (-120.6 points), Fertilizer (-63.2 points), Technology (-57.5 points), E&P (-42.7 points) and Cement (-35.0 points).

Volumes increased from 243.1 million shares to 286.0 million shares (+17.6 per cent DoD). Traded value decreased by 6.7 per cent to reach US$ 53.0 million as against US$ 56.8 million.

Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes include TREET, KEL, HUMNL, WTL and EPCL.