KARACHI: Pakistan equities dropped further with benchmark KSE-100 Index shedding another 1.8 percent in listless trading on Tuesday.
The market saw a lackluster session today, punctuated with low volumes and an overall negative sentiment. The index suffered an intraday low of 928 points, eventually making a partial recovery to close at 41,233, down 741 points.
The mood remained dampen as index heavy Habib Bank Limited (HBL) losing 5 percent closed limit down for second straight session following US regulator seeking to impose heavy fine on the bank; over 1.5 million shares traded off-market with most volumes going through at Rs 155/share, 21 percent below Tuesday’s lower limit and 29 percent below Friday’s close.
Wider market also carried bearish momentum and skidded lower with general lack of interest both from institutional and retail investors culminating in a dismal 130 million Volume on KSE All Index.
Elixir Research’s analyst sees choppy trading to continue on lower overall activity as investors will likely trade cautiously and wait for market to find a stable ground during remaining days of this short week.
led by TRG (-4.70%,) from Technology & Communication sector as 16 million shares changed hands. AICL (-3.67%) from the Insurance sector declared its result for first half 2017, posting EPS of Rs3.03 and DPS of Rs1.5. Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) (+2.34%) and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) (+1.68%) closed in the green zone for a second consecutive day amid a declining market.
Commercial banks bore heavily on the index, led by negativity in HBL (-5%) and the other banks came tumbling after. Total contribution from the entire sector was 288 points negative, with UBL (-2.02%) and MCB (-2.54%) among the other major losers. Negativity in heavyweight stocks such as HBL and MARI (-5%) in the midst of bearish sentiment (led by political factors) is expected to add to the woes of the market. “We expect bearish momentum to persist for the time being and recommend investors to sell on strength”, said JS Research’s analyst Maaz Mulla.
