Bulls roar as PSX soars to new all-time high

Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Friday soared to unprecedented heights with substantial gains of over 750 points, fuelled by robust buying on the back of a favourable corporate earnings outlook, foreign fund inflows and speculation ahead of monetary policy meeting. In the morning, the market looked depressed when the KSE-100 index dipped to the intra-day low of 71,764.18 points in the very first hour. However, the market started recovering quickly, with major support coming from fertiliser, power and banking sectors. Investor sentiment got a boost from the inflows coming from overseas Pakistanis, who invested $182 million through the Roshan Digital Account (RDA) in March 2024. Investors’ expectations before the announcement of monetary policy early next week also helped maintain the momentum in the market, where the index rose to the intra-day high of 72,862.41 well after midday. “Stocks closed at an all-time high on a strong earnings outlook and reports of Roshan Digital Account reaching $7.66 billion,” said Ahsan Mehanti, MD of Arif Habib Corp. “Foreign inflows, stable rupee, speculation ahead of the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) policy rate decision on April 29 and new IMF loan talks played the role of catalysts in the record close of the PSX.” At close, the benchmark KSE-100 index posted handsome gains of 771.35 points, or 1.07%, and settled at 72,742.75. “Pakistan’s stock market is on fire! It’s near the 73,000 mark and still soaring, it’s leading the pack with incredible gains of almost 80% in dollar terms over the past year,” Topline Securities CEO Mohammed Sohail commented, adding that the PSX maintained its No 1 position based on Bloomberg data. Separately, in its report, Topline said a positive session was observed at the PSX where the index gained 771 points to close at its highest-ever level of 72,743. Major positive contributors were Engro Fertilisers, Bank AL Habib, Hub Power, Fauji Fertiliser Company and Engro Corporation, which cumulatively added 577 points to the index, it added. Arif Habib Limited (AHL), in its commentary, wrote that the KSE-100 index recorded the sixth consecutive weekly rise with gains of 2.54% week-on-week. “All eyes are now on the SBP’s monetary policy committee, which is scheduled to meet on Monday, with opinions again mixed on when the SBP will start the easing cycle,” it said. Engro Fertilisers (+6.06%), Bank AL Habib (+5.71%) and Fauji Fertiliser Co (+3.31%) were the biggest contributors to the index gains while Millat Tractors (-1.63%), TRG Pakistan (-2.92%) and Pakistan Oilfields (-0.98%) were the largest drags. “The outlook remains positive while near-term support continues to hold,” AHL added. JS Global analyst Muhammad Shuja Qureshi said that the KSE-100 ended the week with a surge of 771 points to a record high at 72,743. The rally was led by auto and fertiliser sectors where Ghandhara Industries and Fauji Fertiliser Bin Qasim closed at their respective upper locks, he said. Investors were also bullish in banking and cement stocks. Profit-taking was witnessed in technology companies after recent gains, the analyst added. Overall trading volumes decreased to 541.1 million shares against Thursday’s tally of 798.5 million. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs22.6 billion. Shares of 377 companies were traded. Of these, 177 stocks closed higher, 175 dropped and 25 remained unchanged. Askari Bank was the volume leader with trading in 39.2 million shares, gaining Rs0.31 to close at Rs25.16. It was followed by K-Electric with 31.2 million shares, losing Rs0.06 to close at Rs4.58 and WorldCall Telecom with 30.2 million shares, losing Rs0.06 to close at Rs1.33. Foreign investors were net buyers of shares worth Rs53.4 million, according to the NCCPL. Published in The Express Tribune, April 27th, 2024. Like Business on Facebook, follow @TribuneBiz on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.  

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