KARACHI: The Pakistan bourse witnessed a volatile situation on Tuesday where profit-taking was observed throughout the day as the investors took a cue from rising economic uncertainty.
Both current account deficit and trade deficit widened, which kept the investors under pressure, an analyst at Pearl Securities said.
“The State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) reserves are at an all-time low of $10 billion, barely enough to cover two months’ import bill. The rupee also ended its seven-day winning streak. The new government is taking its sweet time to settle in giving rumour mills a chance to question its viability,” he added.
Moreover, the new government will have to conduct tough negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to attain the much needed $1 billion to buttress the national reserves.
The Pakistan Stock Exchange KSE-100 shares Index shed 0.44 per cent, or 206.23 points, to close at 46,333.36 points. The KSE-30 shares Index shed 0.45 per cent, or 80.02 points, to close at 17,862.70 points.
The ready market volumes stood at 228.62 million shares compared with the turnover of 255.60 million shares in the last trading session.
Ahsan Mehanti at Arif Habib Corp said that the stocks fell sharply lower on slump in the rupee and uncertainty over the outcome of Pakistan’s talks with the IMF for the resumption of Extended Fund Facility (EFF).
“Investor concerns over the World Bank outlook projecting thin growth at 4 per cent for fiscal year 2023, high macroeconomic risks, inflation and fiscal imbalances played a catalyst role in the bearish close,” he added.
Going forward, the analysts expect the market to perform well, therefore suggesting investors adopt the “buy on dip” strategy.
The companies which reflected the highest gains included Sapphire Fiber up Rs67 to close at Rs968/share, and Bhanero Tex up Rs37 to close at Rs1,370/share.
The companies that reflected the most losses included Mari Petroleum down Rs26.04 to close at Rs1,735.44/share, and Philip Morris Pak down Rs20 to close at Rs630/share.
The highest volumes were witnessed in Cnergyico PK with a turnover of 18.32 million shares. The scrip shed 35 paisas to close at Rs6.14/share, followed by Ghani Global Holdings with a turnover of 18.02 million shares. It shed Rs1.39 to close at Rs19.36/share. WorldCall Telecom remained the third with a turnover of 11.54 million shares. It shed 5 paisas to finish at Rs1.80/share.