KARACHI: The equity market closed lower on Thursday where selling momentum was witnessed as 3 months T-Bills yields went up 75 basis points to 15.25 per cent raising concerns over a possible hike in the policy rate.
An analyst at Arif Habib Limited said the KSE-100 Index made an intraday low of 623 points as selling pressure was witnessed across the board. Volumes remained dull although third tier stocks were in the limelight.
The Pakistan Stock Exchange KSE-100 shares Index shed 1.21 per cent, or 518.13 points, to close at 42,237.91 points. The KSE-30 shares Index shed 1.15 per cent, or 187.19 points, to close at 16,108.36 points.
Ahsan Mehanti at Arif Habib Corp said that Stocks closed sharply lower amid thin trade on surging Treasury bond yields which were up 75 basis points to reach 15.25 per cent and a slump in the global equities.
“A surge in the National Savings Scheme (NSS) rates and likely National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) announcement on higher power prices to restore the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme played a catalyst role in the bearish close,” he added.
Going forward, the analysts recommend investors to stay cautious and avail any downside as a buying opportunity in the banking sector.
As many as 345 scrips were active of which 75 advanced, 254 declined and 16 remained unchanged.
The ready market volumes stood at 157 million shares, compared with the turnover of 194.39 million shares in the last trading session.
The companies which reflected the highest gains included Sapphire Tex up Rs70 to close at Rs1,120/share, Sapphire Fiber up Rs35.01 to close at Rs1,135/share.
The companies which reflected the most losses included Bata (Pak) down Rs126.85 to close at Rs1,723.15/share, and Nestle Pakistan down Rs105 to close at Rs5,675/share.
The highest volumes were witnessed in Pak Refinery with a turnover of 14.99 million shares. The scrip gained 19 paisas to close at Rs17.95/share, followed by Unity Foods Ltd with a turnover of 10.96 million shares. It shed 44 paisas to close at Rs21.86/share. Cnergyico PK remained the third with a turnover of 9.87 million shares. It shed 17 paisas to finish at Rs5.40/share.
