Daily Times

Bulls took charge at kse-100 on Monday, lifting the index by 272.75 points to close at 42,295.75 points by the session closing.

The first trading day of the week, kick started with a bang, attracting fresh interest in most of the sectors following the announcement of a Rs.1.1 trillion package under the Karachi Transformation Plan by the Prime Minister to resolve the lingering and chronic issues of the port city, which submerged under during recent floods.

Moreover, active participation was witnessed throughout the session, with cement sector attracting the lion’s share. Cement sector witnessed a volume of 120 million shares, followed by the commercial banks and technology & communication posting volumes of worth 75 million shares and 66 million shares, respectively.

On Monday, the benchmark KSE-100 Index remained positive throughout the day, touching its intraday high at 42,400.25 after gaining 377.25 points. The index volumes dipped from 417.31 million shares, in the previous session to 388.89 million shares, while the overall market volumes also slightly receded from 758.08 million shares in the previous session to 748.89 million shares.

The volume chart was led by Power Cement Limited, followed by Pakistan International Bulk Terminal Ltd and Hascol Petroleum Limited. The scrips exchanged 72.41 million, 57.33 million and 45.99 million shares, respectively.

Sectors which lifted the index were Cement with 58 points, Fertilizer with 55 points, Technology & Communication with 36 points, Oil & Gas Marketing Companies with 29 points and Power Generation & Distribution with 23 points. Among the scrips, most points added to the index was by Lucky Cement Limited which contributed 41 points followed by Systems Limited with 33 points, Fauji Fertilizer Company Limited with 28 points, Hub Power Company Limited with 23 points and Hascol Petroleum Limited with 22 points.

However, sectors which kept pressure and drove down the index were Oil & Gas Exploration Companies with 47 points, Paper & Board with 6 points, Textile Composite with 4 points, Miscellaneous with 4 points and Automobile Parts & Accessories with 1 point. Among the scrips, most points taken off the index was by Pakistan Oilfields Limited which stripped the index of 21 points followed by Habib Bank Limited with 13 points, Pakistan Petroleum Limited with 10 points, Oil & Gas Development Company Limited with 8 points and Mari Petroleum Company Limited with 8 points.

Global markets: Major markets witnessed a mixed trend on Monday, as investors struggled for a direction. Investors sentiments were also dampened over escalating U.S-Sino tensions, as the rifts between the two economic giants have moved beyond trade and technology and is now intensifying in the financial sector as well. Investors are following the developments past the threats by Trump administration aimed at China, to delist Chinese companies, indicating that the U.S. is determined to sever financial market links between the two countries.

In Asia, stocks made a move as investors treaded cautiously over rising U.S-China diplomatic tensions. Chinese stocks led the losses among the region’s major markets on the day, with the benchmark index Shanghai composite declining down 1.87% to about 3,292.5, followed by Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index which closed 0.43% lower at 24,589.65. Japan’s Nikkei 225 also recorded losses and closed 0.5% lower at 23,089.95. However, South Korea’s Kopsi index bucked up the trend, and gained 0.67% to close at 2,384.22.

In Europe, stocks made a comeback on Monday, as markets were looking to recover from consecutive losses fueled by the tech sector in the previous week. The pan-European Stoxx 600 advanced over 1.6%, with autos adding 2.5% to lead gains as all sectors and major bourses entered positive territory. Among other regional bourses, UK’s FTSE-100 index led the gains, and gained 2.32% followed by Germany’s DAX index which climbed nearly 2%. CAC-40 in France also advanced on the day, closing 1.83% higher.