Despite an announcement from the US State Department assuring Pakistan that the $700m foreign aid would not be frozen, the KSE-100 failed to incorporate the news as the index managed a meager 22 point gain to close at 11,300 points. Had it not been for the strong performances by OGDC and FFC, the index would have ended up in the red zone again as the scripts combined to provide 52 points towards the index gain. In the fertiliser sector, FATIMA remained under selling pressure as concerns remain regarding the future of the CAN operation.
The cement sector stayed on positive ground as both LUCK and DGKC maintained an upward trajectory. With the market volumes once again at a lackluster 34.9m shares, investor confidence appears to be in a slump and only a stellar reason could be the trigger that the market desperately needs, said Ali Hussain, Senior Investment Analyst at HMFS. The KSE 100 index closed at 11300.99 levels with the gain of 22.97 points, while KSE 30 index gained 47.19 points to close at 10469.17 levels. All Share index closed at 7825.14 levels after gaining 13.72 points. Total 106 scrips advanced 102 declined and 97 remain unchanged out of total 305 scrips traded.
