KARACHI - Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) sustained its bullish momentum on Wednesday. The 100-share index gained 416 points and closed at 46,949 points.
Buying interest was witnessed in OMC sector as PSO (up 2.46%), SNGP ( 2.51%), and SSGC (up 1.64%) gained from the aforementioned sector. PSO likely gained on prospective of becoming Shariah compliant after receipt of cash against PIBs and retirement of short-term debt, said analyst Maaz Mulla at JS Global. Steel sector continued its positive trend due to revised custom valuations on imported steel, favoring local steel manufacturers.
ASL (up 5%), ISL (3.89%) and ASTL (1.55%) were the major gainers from the steel sector. OGDC (down 0.57%), POL (0.25%) and PPL (0.82%) from the E&P sector shed points as international oil prices decreased on account of increasing US oil inventory and high OPEC production. HBL (up 2.94%), MCB (1.60%) and UBL (1.33%) from the commercial banking sector cumulatively contributed 150 points to the index.
Stocks closed higher on strong earnings outlook in the leveraged cement, fertilizer and auto scrips after upbeat CPI inflation data for July'17, stated analyst Ahsan Mehanti at Arif Habib Corp. Investor speculations on PM ambitious vision announcements following election in NA, higher global crude prices, upbeat global equities and strong corporate results in the cement; oil and auto sector played a catalyst role in bullish close.
Volumes stood at 368 million shares as compared to 256 million in the last trading session. While traded value stood at Rs16.8b/$160m.
KEL from the power generation sector led the volumes in market with 29 million shares changing hands, followed by BOP with 24m shares and TRG Pak with 23m traded shares were in spotlight in the session. Brokers expect positivity to continue in the market.