Daily Times

The 100-Index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) turned around to bullish trend on Tuesday, gaining 671.73 points, a positive change of 0.85 percent, closing at 79,286.74 points against 78,615.00 points on the last working day.

A total of 509,490,385 shares were traded during the day as compared to 491,124,197 shares the previous day, whereas the price of shares stood at Rs 13.763 billion against Rs.10.124 billion on the last trading day.

As many as 436 companies transacted their shares in the stock market, 202 of them recorded gains and 170 sustained losses, whereas the share price of 64 companies remained unchanged. The three top trading companies were WorldCall Telecom with 117,010,305 shares at Rs 1.52 per share, Kohinoor Spining with 57,119,736 shares at Rs.10.06 per share and Agritech Limited with 18,160,711 shares at Rs.35.31 per share.

Hoechst Pakistan Limited witnessed a maximum increase of Rs.137.38 per share price, closing at Rs 2,069.23, whereas the runner-up was Unilever Pakistan Foods Limited with a Rs 68.99 rise in its per share price to Rs 17,368.99.

Hallmark Company Limited witnessed a maximum decrease of Rs 104.68 per share closing at Rs 999.96 followed by Khyber Textile Mills Limited with Rs 60.65 decline to close at Rs 545.81. Asian markets mostly rose Tuesday after a rally on Wall Street as traders try to assess the outlook for US interest rates following last week’s disappointing jobs report, with focus on the release of key inflation data.

With Friday’s non-farm payrolls showing the labour market slowing faster than expected, there is a growing worry that the world’s top economy is heading for a recession, which sent stocks tumbling.

The Federal Reserve is widely seen cutting rates at next week’s meeting but debate surrounds whether it will be 25 or 50 basis points, with some arguing that going for the bigger option could suggest decision-makers are worried.

Analyst Stephen Innes said there were numerous factors that could sway nervous investors ahead of the Fed’s decision.

Wednesday’s consumer price index is the first major release and a big miss to the downside could ramp up bets on a 50-point cut but add to concerns about the economy.

“While the labour market is cooling, it’s far from frozen, and second-quarter GDP was revised up to a solid 3.0 percent annualised gain, keeping the soft-landing narrative firmly on the table,” Innes wrote in his Dark Side Of The Boom newsletter.

Still, he added: “For now, the Fed likely won’t feel the need to hit the panic button with a jumbo rate cut, but stock traders… haven’t fully grasped the depth of the potential labour market weakness yet.

“That leaves the door open for further, potentially sizeable market corrections. Expect the worry meter to creep higher if the employment picture deteriorates further.”

And Saira Malik at Nuveen added: “With at least one rate cut by the US Federal Reserve this fall basically a foregone conclusion, financial markets have shifted their focus from bringing down inflation to shoring up economic growth. Market volatility has climbed amid downside surprises in macroeconomic data — especially labour market indicators.”

All three main indexes on Wall Street rose more than one percent Monday after Friday’s steep, tech-led retreat.

Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Wellington, Manila, Mumbai and Jakarta edged up but Tokyo, Seoul, Taipei and Bangkok dipped.

Paris and Frankfurt rose in the morning but London was down.

Fresh worries about China’s economy are also dampening sentiment, with a mixed bag on trade doing little to encourage investors. Data showed exports jumped in August but imports fell well short of expectations as the country’s leaders struggle to boost consumption.

That came a day after news that inflation rose less than expected in July, reinforcing the view that moves to boost consumer demand and business activity have not taken hold.

China’s leaders are now facing pressure to unveil fresh stimulus for the world’s number two economy, although they have shown little desire to embark on the bazooka-like spending seen during the global financial crisis.