KARACHI: Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX)managed to recover overnight losses on Tuesday, as upward movement in index heavy weight scrips, lifted benchmark Kse-100 by 331.89 points to settle at 46,680.34 level.
The Index began the session on positive note andaccumulated nearly 400 points to touch an intra-day high at 46,642.72 index level. While several internal factors contributed to today’s performance, the benchmark index primarily reacted to a positive momentum in international equities, which rode high on the back of increased optimism about stimulus packages and global economic recovery.
The main price appreciation was witnessed in the stocks of Exploration & Production and Oil Marketing Companies following the surge in global oil prices. On Tuesday, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate futures rose 2.4%, while the global Brent benchmark crude came back within sight of $60. Gains in broader markets spurred crude, while a weaker U.S. dollar also buoyed commodities priced in the currency. Oil has risen steadily since late last year as coronavirus vaccines and supply curbs from OPEC and its allies spur hopes that global stockpiles will continue to slide.
Pakistan State Oil(PSO) emerged as session’s star performer, as its stock went up by 5.62% as the company posted the largest volumetric growth of 31% YoY in sales of petroleum products, driven by over 2 times YoY increase in FO sales. Meanwhile, Oil &Gas Development Company Limited too saw an increase in its share price by 2.45% after it announced discovery of gas and condensate from exploratory well Sial-1, which is located in district Hyderabad, Sindh Province.
During the session the sentiments were also buoyed by signing of agreement between Independent Power Plants (IPP) and the government which also motivated investors to take positions in PSO and Hub Power Company Limited (HUBCO). HUBCO performed exceptionally too as its stock went up by 4.49% after the company announced an agreement with Central Power Purchasing Agency (Guarantee) Limited (Power Purchaser) in furtherance of the Memorandum of Understanding dated 21st August 2020. The volume at Kse-100 receded from 375.69 million shares recorded in the previous session, to 266.31 million shares, while the all-share volume also declined from 693 million shares in the previous session to 468million shares. The volume chart was led by Refinery Limited, Hascol Petroleum Limited, K-Electric Limited and Pakistan International Bulk Terminal Limited. The scrips exchanged 43.96 million, 34.22 million and 22.58 million shares, respectively.
According to the National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited foreign investors were net buyers of worth $0.08million worth of shares. Among the local investors, Other Organizations and Individuals led the selling chart with $1.99million and $1.35 million worth of equities,however, the buying chart was led by Banks, Insurance Companies and Brokers,as they mopped up $1.5 million, $1.41 million and $1.17 million worth of equities.
Sectors that lifted the index were Oil & Gas Exploration Companies with 101 points, Power Generation & Distribution with 88 points, Oil & Gas Marketing Companies with 61 points, Commercial Banks with 34 points and Pharmaceuticals with 30 points. Among the scrips, the most points added to the index was by Hub Power Company Limited which contributed 87 points followed by Pakistan State Oil with 65 points, Oil &Gas Development Company Limited with 39 points, Pakistan Oilfields Limited with 36 points and Muslim Commercial Bank with 27 points.
However, sectors that continued to weigh down the index were Engineering with 13 points, Refinery with 4 points, Chemical with 4 points, Automobile Parts & Accessories with 4 points and Vanaspati& Allied Industries with 4 points. Among the scrips, the most points taken off the index was by Habib Bank Limited which stripped the index of 21 points followed by Hascol Petroleum Limited with 12 points, International Industries Limited with 11 points, Meezan Bank Limited with 8 points and DGKhan Cement with 5 points.