If investors’ sentiments on the stocks market are any criteria, the economics seems to have had a profound edge over politics in the country of uncertainties like Pakistan.
The investors’ bullish mood at Karachi Stocks Exchange on Monday depicted as if the traders were completely unwary of what was happening on the city’s roads that remained deserted throughout the day, thanks to a wheel-jam and shutter-down strike called by the Shia Ulema Council and other stakeholders to mourn the deadly carnage in Quetta Sunday.
Even the traditionally most effective political upsets like the fresh split between the ruling collation partners, the PPP and MQM, did not seem to have its impact on the country’s largest sentiments-driven bourse. Rather, the improving economic indicators seemed to be dictated the investors’ sentiments at the country’s largest bourse that, despite the most uncertain law and order situation, gained 68.39 points or increased by 0.38 percent on the day.
The benchmark KSE 100-share index closed at 17,865.61 points against 17,797.22 points of Friday, last trading session of the previous week.
The index was also recorded peaking to the intraday high of 17,914.43 points before plunging to the intraday low of 17,750.12 points. Of the total scrips traded, 147 saw their share price increasing, 162 contracting and 22 as unchanged.
The free-float KSE-30 index also closed in green zone at 14,624.29 points, gaining 61.51 points compared to 14,562.78 points of the previous session.
The shares traded were recorded at the ready-counter at 291.611 million, registering an increase of 28.865 million compared to Friday’s 262.746 million shares. The value of total traded shares also rose to Rs 7.177 billion from Rs 7.063 billion.
The market capital also set in the green zone by inflating to Rs 4.469 trillion compared to Rs 4.461 trillion of last week. The second and tier shares remained on the forefront led by the PTCL which counted its traded shares at 29.23 million gaining 0.82 paisas. The Pace (Pak) Limited, NIB Bank, Fauji Cement, Telecard Limited, Jhangir Siddqui Company, Engro Corporation, Maple Leaf, DG Khan Cement and Aisha Steel were other volume leaders of the day. The trading on the future side also grew to 31.3 million shares from the previous 19.71 million.
The earning announcement session was cited by the market analysts as a primary sentiments-booster on Monday.
“(The) stocks closed bullish amid higher trades in the earning announcement session at KSE on strong earnings outlook,” viewed Ahsan Mehanti, a senior equity analyst. Other leading attributable factor Mehanti saw at work to enhance confidence of the risk-averse investors on Monday was the small but significant surplus the country was able to achieve in its current account during the first seven months of current fiscal year.
According to data released last week by the central bank, during July-JanuaryFY13 the country’s current account posted a surplus of $ 62 million compared to a huge deficit of $ 2.792 billion during the corresponding period of FY12.
The surplus, according to chief spokesman of State Bank of Pakistan Syed Wasimuddin, was “due to the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) and reduced trade deficit”. While the review period saw the trade gap narrowing down to $ 8.774 billion from last year’s $ 9.418 billion, the country received $ 688 million from its non-Nato allies in the United States in December last year as war reimbursements, popularly known as CSF.
Washington’s reported willingness to continue the reimbursement of CSF to Islamabad despite opposition from some Congressmen also boosted the investors’ confidence at Karachi bourse. “(The) $62 million current account surplus for July-Jan 2013… speculations ahead of US CSF release” Mehanti said played as a catalyst.
The receipts under the head of worker remittances, which amounted to $ 8.207 billion during July-JanuaryFY13 compared to $ 7.436 billion of last year, are also considered to be a persisting stimulus to this effect. Other factors that impacted the investors’ sentiments positively were the expected hike in KESC’s power tariff easing concerns for circular debt in the energy sector, hopes for the OGDC gas sales agreement with fertilizer companies and improved outlook for LDI segment revenue for telecom stocks, the analyst said who also is a director at Arif Habib Securities. This Mehanti said was “security concerns in the city and rising political uncertainty after key (the) coalition partner (MQM) exits government”.
