Business

Stocks close in green amid thin trade

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

Stock market traded between hope and despair.
KSE-100 index gains 30.95 points to close at 42,761.19.
Shares of 334 companies were traded during the session.

KARACHI: Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) saw lacklustre activity on Monday but the benchmark KSE-100 index, after oscillating in a narrow band, managed to close in the green zone.

Sceptical investors adopted a cautious approach amid the continuous depreciation of the Pakistani rupee against the US dollar, mainly owing to the growing risk of defaulting and the absence of a timeframe regarding incoming financing from Saudi Arabia and China, which kept the mainboard stocks under pressure.

On the contrary, investor confidence received a boost on news of Pakistan’s current account deficit data which yawned $204 million in October 2022 as compared to September’s $363 million.

Owing to the mixed sentiments, the benchmark KSE-100 index moved in a narrow range of an intra-day high and low of 42,853.94 and 42,664.53 points, respectively to finally settle with decent gains.

The market, after opening on a positive note, witnessed fluctuations since the beginning of the session. The bourse traded between hope and despair, which eventually let loose the bulls who dragged the bourse into the green.

In initial trading, the index touched an intra-day high of 42,853.94 points, but it soon came down and remained in the red till midday. However, a buying spree in the final hour propelled the index into positive territory.

The benchmark KSE-100 share index gained 30.95 points or 0.07% to close at 42,761.19 points.

Benchmark KSE-100 index intra-day trading curve. — PSX data portal

Arif Habib Limited in its post-session commentary noted that a range-bound session was witnessed at the PSX today.

The KSE-100 index opened on a positive note but a lack of investors’ confidence dragged the index to trade in a narrow range. Mainboard volumes remained dry although decent volumes were observed in the third-tier stocks.

Sectors contributing to the performance included technology and communication (+97 points), commercial banks (+17 points), miscellaneous (+9.7 points), transport (+6.4 points), and oil and gas marketing companies (+6 points).

Shares of 334 companies were traded during the session. At the close of trading, 150 scrips closed in the green, 156 in the red, and 28 remained unchanged.

Overall trading volumes declined to 132.94 million shares compared with Friday’s tally of 189.28 million. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs4.57 billion.

Worldcall Telecom was the volume leader with 14.12 million shares traded, losing Rs0.04 to close at Rs1.41. It was followed by TRG Pakistan with 10.23 million shares traded, gaining Rs5.02 to close at Rs146.57 and Unity Foods with 17.13 million shares gaining Rs0.41 to close at Rs17.13.

Business

Pakistan suffers a loss of millions due to inoperable airports.

Published

21 hours ago

Farwa

The Pakistani economy is strengthening and trending in the right direction, according to Federal Minister of Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb on Thursday.

Speaking at the Pakistan Saudi Arabia Business Forum, Aurangzeb stated that the goal of the government was to support the private sector rather than engage in commerce. His goal was to encourage business-to-business (B2B) trade and investment, thus he welcomed the delegation from Saudi Arabia.

Within the last 12 to 14 months, the minister saw a considerable improvement in macroeconomic stability. With the help of foreign exchange reserves sufficient to cover two months’ worth of imports, Pakistan steadied its currency, decreased its current account deficit to less than $1 billion, and produced a primary surplus.

Strong remittances, expanding exports, and a drop in inflation from 38% to 6.9% have all contributed to the consolidation of these benefits, according to Muhammad Aurangzeb. Companies have also profited from the insurance rate reduction.

Even if Pakistan’s credit rating has improved, more work needs to be done to bring it up to at least a B-. Both on the debt and equity sectors, he claimed, institutional flows were returning to the nation.

As the International Monetary Fund (IMF) board approved an extended program for the nation, the Islamabad Stock Exchange set a record high.

He stated that the IMF program will implement structural reforms in addition to ensuring macroeconomic stability for the long run.

The government of Pakistan remains committed to structural changes, sustainable growth, and tax reform, as stated by Muhammad Aurangzeb.

Business

Pakistan’s economy is getting better, according to Muhammad Aurangzeb

Published

21 hours ago

Farwa

The Pakistani economy is strengthening and trending in the right direction, according to Federal Minister of Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb on Thursday.

thus,Speaking at the Pakistan Saudi Arabia Business Forum, Aurangzeb stated that the goal of the government was to support the private sector rather than engage in commerce. His goal was to encourage business-to-business (B2B) trade and investment, thus he welcomed the delegation from Saudi Arabia.

As the International Monetary Fund (IMF) board approved an extended program for the nation, the Islamabad Stock Exchange set a record high.

He stated that the IMF program will implement structural reforms in addition to ensuring macroeconomic stability for the long run.

The government of Pakistan remains committed to structural changes, sustainable growth, and tax reform, as stated by Muhammad Aurangzeb.

Business

Remittances from Workers

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

In September of this year, the State Bank of Pakistan reported that remittances from overseas Pakistanis amounted to 2.8 billion dollars, reflecting a 29% increase compared to the remittances received in September of the previous year.

The SBP reports that, with a cumulative inflow of 8.8 billion US dollars in the first quarter of the financial year, workers’ remittances increased by 38.8 percent compared to the first quarter of the previous year.

Remittance inflows in September 2024 were primarily derived from Saudi Arabia at $681.3 million, the United Arab Emirates at $560.3 million, the United Kingdom at $423.6 million, and the United States of America at $274.9 million.