At the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) business closed mixed but overall positive on Monday. The selected banking, refining and energy stocks continued to sell and the market was able to hold on to a slight gain.
The main KSE-100 index was up 0.07 percent and at 175,927.74 points at the close. The index jumped as high as 176,129.35 points and down to 173,636.46 points during the day, reflecting the volatility throughout the session.
The overall trading volume of shares of companies in the market remained unchanged at 343.88 million shares. But despite the market’s negative trend, analysts said there was no big buying interest by investors, but interest in companies with good fundamentals was there.
An analysis of individual companies shows that United Bank Limited (UBL) had the highest positive contribution with 183.57 points in the index. Other than this, there was also heavy buying at Attock Refinery (ATRL), China Energy (CNERGY), Engro Holdings (ENGRO) and Hub Power (HUBC).
On the other hand, selling pressure in Habib Bank (HBL), Millat Tractors (MTL), Mari Energies (MARI), Engro Fertilizers (EFERT) and Service Industries (SRVI) limited the overall growth of the market.
The KMI-30 index also had a positive performance, rising 492.98 points, or 0.20 per cent, to close at 247,816.35.
Attock Refinery (ATRL), Pakistan Refinery (PRL), Engro Holdings (ENGRO), National Refinery (NRL) and Hub Power (HUBC) were the top performers in the KMI-30 index. Conversely, shares of companies that had a negative impact on the index were Mari Energies (MARI), Engro Fertilizers (EFERT), Meezan Bank (MEBL), Airlink (AIRLINK) and Sui Northern Gas (SNGP).
The data shows that the KSE-100 index has fallen 2.43% from the start of this year and the KMI-30 index has fallen by 3.70% from the beginning of this year. However, the modest gains on Monday suggest that investors are staying put with a cautious approach to the markets.
The coming days will see the results of listed companies, interest rates and economic indicators projected and government economic decisions made which investors may react to, according to the market experts. Bearing these in mind, the Pakistan Stock Exchange’s direction will be set, and thoughtful and research-based decisions are being looked upon as crucial for investors.