The deregulation of fuel prices was taken as a positive sign by investors thus allowing the entire energy sector to display strength, duly backed by turnover. These initiatives including a reduction in local fuel prices with reports regarding the likely reduction in cash margin requirement that is likely to be replaced with shares in leverage markets including deliverable future and MTS seemingly geared up the resident participants for renewed activity in the frontline stocks from E&P sector along with various dividend yielders. Thus displaying strength, ahead of budget, likely to carry the much desired change in implementation mechanism of CGT, allowed the market men to confidently build position in frontline stocks.
The KSE-100 index closed at 12,264.06 with a gain of 140.91 points and total volume stood at 71,257,536 along with the total value of 4,461,666,369. KSE-30 index gained 127.34 points to close at 11,890.10 and All Share index closed at 8,534.02 after gaining 94.27 points. A total of 171 scrips advanced, 94 declined and 85 remain unchanged out of total 350 scrips traded.
Although turnover and value of traded shares stayed on the higher side, momentum yet failed to meet expectations, thereby indicating a high participation by active participants, while cautious investors await the implications of te Federal Budget. Taxation mechanism applications on equity market trade however added to the nervousness as a poor economic and financial situation, volatile political and geo-political environment take their toll. This is likely to impact despite the positive features of the federal budget, a reduction in cash demands for leverage products and materialisation of proposed change in CGT mechanism which is likely to allow increase in market turnover and boost effective price discovery said Hasnain Asghar Ali at Aziz Fidahusein.
Energy sector forges ahead
