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PSX Closing Bell: Castles Made of Sand..
November 27, 2020 (MLN): The stock market turned bearish on Friday as it surrendered to the profit-taking activity owing to future rollover week which comes to an end.
Accordingly, the benchmark KSE-100 Index recorded a negative close of 224 points to settle at 40,807 level. Moreover, investors also reacted to the announcement by OGDC in which the company informed regarding discovery of gas from its exploratory well Lakhirud X-1.
The Index traded in a range of 315.59 points or 0.77 percent of previous close, showing an intraday high of 41,067.13 and a low of 40,751.54.
Of the 97 traded companies in the KSE100 Index 35 closed up 58 closed down, while 4 remained unchanged. Total volume traded for the index was 247.89 million shares.
Sector wise, the index was let down by Oil & Gas Exploration Companies with 86 points, Cement with 51 points, Fertilizer with 38 points, Commercial Banks with 31 points and Oil & Gas Marketing Companies with 23 points.
The most points taken off the index was by PPL which stripped the index of 33 points followed by LUCK with 28 points, OGDC with 24 points, ENGRO with 22 points and HUBC with 17 points.
Sectors propping up the index were Technology & Communication with 45 points, Automobile Assembler with 13 points, Chemical with 12 points, Vanaspati & Allied Industries with 7 points and Refinery with 3 points.
The most points added to the index was by TRG which contributed 40 points followed by MTL with 17 points, COLG with 11 points, UNITY with 7 points and SCBPL with 4 points.
All Share Volume increased by 8.60 Million to 397.79 Million Shares. Market Cap decreased by Rs.20.08 Billion.
Total companies traded were 394 compared to 405 from the previous session. Of the scrips traded 195 closed up, 181 closed down while 18 remained unchanged.
Total trades decreased by 14,188 to 127,373.
Value Traded decreased by 2.87 Billion to Rs.13.16 Billion
| Company | Volume |
|---|---|
| Unity Foods | 53,464,500 |
| TRG Pakistan | 46,018,000 |
| K-Electric | 23,109,000 |
| Maple Leaf Cement Factory | 19,874,113 |
| Hum Network | 19,807,500 |
| Hascol Petroleum | 16,044,758 |
| TPL Corp | 14,618,500 |
| Pakistan Refinery | 14,426,000 |
| Fauji Fert.Bin(R) | 12,381,000 |
| Worldcall Telecom | 11,175,000 |
| Sector | Volume |
|---|---|
| Technology & Communication | 105,207,600 |
| Vanaspati & Allied Industries | 53,490,500 |
| Cement | 44,094,473 |
| Power Generation & Distribution | 30,280,135 |
| Fertilizer | 24,006,565 |
| Oil & Gas Marketing Companies | 22,841,665 |
| Refinery | 22,146,400 |
| Food & Personal Care Products | 13,502,510 |
| Commercial Banks | 11,313,076 |
| Chemical | 11,266,530 |
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K-Electric registers a 58% decline in net profits during 1QFY21
November 27, 2020(MLN): K-Electric Limited has announced its financial results for the 1st quarter ended September 30,2020 as per which, it has earned net profits of Rs 1.11 billion (EPS: 0.04), i.e. 58% lower than the net profits recorded in the same period of last year.
Pursuant to the details provided to Exchange, the company witnessed around a 5% decline in revenue on the back of decreased tariff adjustments (down by 37% YoY) whereas, the cost of sales fell by 7% YoY owing to a reduction in consumption of fuel and oil. However, the company managed to increase its gross profits by 7% YoY to Rs 13.86 billion during the said period.
The increase in the company’s other operating expenses by 2.36 times YoY, a 50% increase in impairment loss against trade debts along a 51% decline in non-income, undermined the financial health of the company during the period.
However, a decrease in the finance costs by 17% YoY, as well as income tax expense by 24%, provided some solace to the wellbeing of the company.
Financial Results for the quarter ended September 30, 2020 ('000 Rupees) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep-20 | Sep-19 | % Change |
REVENUE |
|
|
|
Sale of energy-net | 68,401,199 | 62,621,625 | 9.23% |
Tariff adjustment | 17,148,508 | 27,339,443 | -37.28% |
| 85,549,707 | 89,961,068 | -4.90% |
COST OF SALES |
|
|
|
Purchase of electricity | (27,582,204) | (26,870,302) | 2.65% |
Consumption of fuel and oil | (37,456,175) | (44,319,479) | -15.49% |
Expenses incurred in generation, transmission and distribution | (6,643,191) | (5,857,178) | 13.42% |
| (71,681,570) | (77,046,959) | -6.96% |
GROSS PROFIT | 13,868,137 | 12,914,109 | 7.39% |
Consumer services and administrative expenses | (5,931,219) | (5,531,953) | 7.22% |
Impairment loss against trade debts | (3,922,093) | (2,616,660) | 49.89% |
Other operating expenses | (338,434) | (142,933) | 136.78% |
Other income | 1,490,107 | 3,048,985 | -51.13% |
PROFIT BEFORE FINANCE COST | 5,166,498 | 7,671,548 | -32.65% |
Finance cost | (3,020,580) | (3,642,834) | -17.08% |
Taxation | (1,034,878) | (1,362,611) | -24.05% |
PROFIT AFTER TAXATION | 1,111,040 | 2,666,103 | -58.33% |
EARNINGS PER SHARE-Basic and diluted | 0.04 | 0.10 | -60.00% |
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Gold price falls to $1,807 an ounce owing to vaccine optimism
November 27, 2020 (MLN): The optimism over a potential vaccine for the extremely infectious COVID-19 disease knocked the demand for the safe-haven commodities. In the international market, gold reached $1,807 per ounce, down by $8 while silver was pegged at $23.24 an ounce.
On the other hand, the price of 24 karat gold rose by Rs 300 to Rs 110,800 per tola in the domestic bullion market. The price of yellow metal had closed at 110,500 per tola on Thursday.
According to the data released by the All Sindh Saraf Jewellers Association, the price of 10-gram gold also increased by Rs 257 to Rs 94,993 against the price of Rs 994,736 reported in the previous session.
Meanwhile, the price of per tola silver and 10-gram silver remained stable at Rs 1,180 and Rs 1,011.65 respectively, the association reported.
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Weekly SPI Increases by 7.48% YoY
November 27, 2020 (MLN): The Weekly Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the Combined Group decreased by 0.92% during the week ended Nov 26, 2020 while the SPI increased by 7.48% compared to the corresponding period from last year.
According to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) the Combined Index was at 141.74 compared to 143.05 on Nov 19, 2020 while the index was recorded at 131.87 a year ago, on Nov 28, 2019
Out of the 51 monitored items, the average price of 11 items increased, 10 items decreased whereas 30 items registered no change during the week.
The weekly SPI percentage change by income groups showed that SPI decreased across all quantiles ranging between 1.05% and 0.83%.
The Lowest Income Group witnessed a weekly decrease of 1.01% while the highest income group recorded a decrease of 0.83%.
On an yearly basis, analysis of SPI change across different income segments showed that SPI increased across all quantiles ranging between 6.61% and 9.23%.
Yearly SPI for the Lowest Income Group increased by 9.23% while the highest income group recorded an increase of 6.61%.
The average price of Sona urea stood at Rs.1686 per 50 kg bag which is 0.12% lower than last week’s price and 15.99% lower when compared to last year.
Meanwhile, average Cement price was recorded at Rs.573 per 50 kg bag, which is 0.53% higher than the previous week and 0.52% lower than prices last year.
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PKR strengthens by 1.3 rupees in a week
November 27, 2020 (MLN): Pakistani rupee (PKR) depreciated by 20 paisa against US Dollar (USD) in today's interbank session as the currency closed the day's trade at PKR 159.46 per USD, against yesterday's closing of PKR 159.27 per USD.
The rupee endured a relatively dull trading session with very little intraday movement, trading in a range of 34 paisa per USD showing an intraday high bid of 159.60 and an intraday Low offer of 159.30.
During the week, the currency has gained 1.3 rupees against the greenback, as the previous week was concluded at PKR 160.73 per USD.
Within the Open Market, PKR was traded at 159.50/160.50 per USD.
Meanwhile, the currency lost 41 paisa to the Pound Sterling as the day's closing quote stood at PKR 213.22 per GBP, while the previous session closed at PKR 212.81 per GBP.
Similarly, PKR's value weakened by 31 paisa against EUR which closed at PKR 190.2 at the interbank today.
On another note, within the money market, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) conducted an Open Market Operation in which it injected Rs.758.5 billion for 7 days at 7.03 percent.
The overnight repo rate towards close of the session was 7.10/7.20 percent, whereas the 1 week rate was 7.00/7.10 percent.
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Roshan Packages: Key Takeaways of Corporate Briefing Session
November 27, 2020 (MLN): Roshan Packages Limited recently conducted an analyst briefing session in which the management discussed the latest financial results of the company and its future outlook.
The company uses state of the art European machinery to provide high quality corrugated, flexible and co-extruded packaging solutions to the FMCG, fruit and pharmaceutical industries among others. The company currently operates two plants (one in Sundar Industrial Estate and one just outside) and has offices and sales people across Pakistan. The company also plans on setting up an environment friendly recycled paper mill. The company has longstanding business relationships with large companies such as Kolson, Pepsico, Bata and Mayfair etc, some of the recent clients on boarded are Coca Cola, TCS, Nestle, Searle etc.
During the briefing, management informed that the company has taken new initiative in last one year by introducing Roshpack (E-Commerce platform) to cater to small and medium businesses for their packaging needs. Many pizza restaurants, pharma companies, fruit makers etc are its clients.
This is the first Packaging portal of its kind in Pakistan where the customers can order their quantities online on small as well as on large scale.
Speaking of financial results, the managment said Roshan Packages earned a gross profit of Rs. 547 million for FY20, as compared to the profit of Rs. 370 million incurred in the same period of last year, showing a growth of 48% YoY. Turnover remained somewhat stable at 5,2333 million for FY20 as compared to 5,397 million in FY 19. However, the management clarified that this offset by a significantly improved profitibality. The operating profit also increased by 242%, while profit after tax increased by 1022%.
The latest financial performace of the company during 1QFY21, is similarly optimistic as the company reported a further increase of 57% in turnover and increase of 128% in gross profit as compared to the same quarter of last year.
Commenting the on the company’s business expansion plans, the management informed analysts that Company’s Subsidiary Roshan Suntao Paper Mills Ltd has acquired land located on M2, motorway near district Sheikhupura near Quaid-e-Azam Business Park, approximately one hour from Lahore International Airport. The mill will commence operations 24 months from financial closure,.
This will allow the company to achieve backward integration, utilize optimum capacity of its corrugated plant through uninterrupted paper supply and reduce cost of production through economies of scale. The management also reaffirmed its commitment to see this project through.
Discussing the Corrugated and Flexible plant, the management said that each of them have a similar stake in overall market share and both are seeing growth, adding that former has room for improvement in capacity utilization, whereas, latter is operating around 70-80%. The overall market supply of corrugated is around 100-150k tonnes a month, making RPL the second biggest in this segment, they further added.
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Avanceon secures three high-value contracts for Oil & Gas and Infrastructure projects in UAE
November 27, 2020 (MLN): Avanceon FZE, a subsidiary of Avanceon Limited, has secured three high-value contracts for Oil & Gas and Infrastructure projects with multinational customers in UAE.
According to the details disclosed by the company, the subsidiary has been contracted to provide a state-of-the-art PLC system and upgradation solution for Ali & Sons Oilfield Supplies & Services Company, a key oil field in UAE. The total value of the project is approx. 1 M AED. The project is currently underway and Avanceon expects to complete it within the agreed timeline.
Avanceon FZE will also provide a Sophisticated Infrastructure Solution for New Residential Developments in KSA. The contract valued at approx.1 M SAR will have Avanceon provide a comprehensive Water & Wastewater Solution to the cities of Taif and Buraidah in provinces Makkah and Al Qassim. The projects are a part of the National Water Company initiative to provide the best water and wastewater services and improve quality across the Kingdom, the notice said.
Another project of approx.1 M AED will see Avanceon provide a sophisticated PLC & SCADA System for Ajman’s Wastewater Treatment Facilities.
These high-value contracts further solidify Avanceon position as a reputable and reliable technology partner within the oil and gas sector.
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Prudent policies led to positive economic growth in Q1
November 27, 2020: Owing to the prudent policies introduced by the government, the country’s economy witnessed positive signs during first quarter of current Fiscal Year (2020-21) as indicated by several important economic indicators.
The remittances grew by 26.5% while foreign direct investment (FDI) increased by 9.1%, tax collection went up by 4.5% and the primary balance has been in surplus amounting to Rs.258 billion.
Official sources said that due to prudent and timely policies of the government, the large Scale Manufacturing (LSM) registered 4.8% growth while the cement sector grew by 20% with 100% capacity utilization and significant increase was also witnessed in sale of cars, motorbikes and tractors during July-October (2020).
The recent data complements the strengthening and expansion of the economy in “recovery” phase amid COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, Moody’s upgraded Pakistan’s economic outlook to ‘stable’ in August 2020.
Pakistan has registered an upward trend in foreign remittances and FDI which is a clear reflection of confidence in Pakistan’s economy.
The government followed a liberal foreign investment regime and introduced measures to promote Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) in the country and as a result the country’s current ranking on EODB improved from 147 in 2018 to 136 in 2019 and to 108 in 2020.
The government had inherited a very precarious economic situation in 2018 and had to introduce a strict financial discipline to curtail excessive government expenditure, increase revenue collection, introduce market driven exchange rate, remove large tax exemptions and discourage imports.
As a consequence, Pakistan had witnessed remarkable improvement in fiscal and current account deficits. Similarly, Pakistan has a primary balance surplus which is unprecedented. All fundamental economic indicators reflected significant improvement before COVID-19 pandemic.
During COVID-19, the government introduced smart lockdown to contain the spread of the disease with the need to keep the economy functional. The smart lockdown allowed many businesses to re-open or continue operations on limited scale to lessen the adverse economic impact during testing times.
The government took several initiatives to facilitate agriculture and constructions sectors to accelerate economic recovery.
In sphere of agriculture, Prime Minister had approved Rs.24 billion package to reduce input cost for farmers. A relief package for SMEs shielded against insolvency and joblessness.
The government had also launched Ehsaas Emergency Cash Program with total allocation of Rs. 144 billion to provide immediate cash relief of Rs.12,000 to 15 million families of daily wage earners.
“The government firmly supports private sector as an engine of growth and believes in building institutional capacity for sustainable and inclusive economic growth,” as stated by the Adviser Finance, Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh during his virtual address to the World Economic Forum on 25 November 2020.
APP
Paul Koyi urges Pakistani businessmen to improve ties with Tanzanian counterparts
November 27, 2020: President Tanzania Chamber of Commerce, Industry & Agriculture (TCCIA) Paul F. Koyi has urged the Pakistani businessmen & industrialists to improve ties with Tanzanian counterparts by exploring more avenues of trade and investment cooperation between the two countries in different sectors of the economy.
Paul Koyi, who led a 4-member Tanzanian delegation during its visit to Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), stressed that Tanzania was a very peaceful country with immense trade and investment opportunities in many sectors particularly the agriculture sector which can be explored by Pakistani business & industrial community that would lead to enhancement of trade and investment ties. “We must start knowing each other, build confidence and bring the business communities of the two countries closer to each other. This is the reason why we are here in Pakistan to bridge the gap, improve ties and explore trade expansion possibilities”, he added.
President KCCI M. Shariq Vohra, Vice President KCCI Shamsul Islam Khan, Former Vice President KCCI Nasir Mehmood, KCCI Managing Committee Members and others attended the meeting.
President TCCIA further stated that staying confined to trading just raw material was not making any sense hence, the business communities of both sides will have to focus on value-addition specifically in the agriculture sector, besides promoting opportunities in tourism, natural habitat, mines & minerals and other important sectors of the economy.
He said that Pakistanis were very friendly and hospitable and there was not much difference hence they can easily collaborate with Tanzanian business community. He invited Pakistani businessmen and industrialists to visit Tanzania which would not only help in improving the existing trade ties but would also provide a perfect opportunity for further exploring the Tanzanian market where profitable opportunities exist while the cost of doing business was also comparatively low.
Earlier, President KCCI Shariq Vohra, while welcoming the Tanzanian delegates, pointed out that although Pakistan and Tanzania have been enjoying great relations since long but the trade volume was still too low. During 2019, Pakistan exported goods worth $87.2 million to Tanzania while the imports stood at $20.53 million only, which require collective efforts and more cooperation between the business communities of the two countries.
He noted that despite the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic all around the world, it was surprising to see that Tanzanian economy is expected to grow at a rate of 5.5 percent and the country has easily come out of problems after the government took key steps to mitigate the economic impact of coronavirus.
President KCCI said, “There is a huge potential to further enhance trade and investment ties between the business communities of the two countries by exploring opportunities in various sectors of the economy particularly the agriculture sector in which special attention has to be given to value-addition which would certainly prove favorable for both the economies.”
He informed that Pakistan’s main exports to Tanzania were cement, textiles, rice and sugar, as well as some relatively high technology goods such as machinery and tractors. “We import tea, raw cotton and hides for leather from Tanzania, along with some imports of tobacco, edible oils and tanning materials.” More goods can be identified to enhance trade with Tanzania. Pakistan currently has shortage of cotton in the country and Tanzania can help meet this demand, he suggested.
He requested President TCCIA to share information about potential sectors for enhancing trade and investment with KCCI so that the business & industrial community of Karachi could look into the possibility of penetrating into the Tanzanian market. President KCCI also extended full technical and professional support and cooperation to Tanzanian Chamber so that the Tanzanian business community could better understand the potential sectors in Pakistan.
Press Release
SBP extends validity period of enhancement in exposure limit up to March 31, 2021.
November 27, 2020 (MLN): The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), in order to facilitate Exchange companies and Exchange companies of "B', has extended the validity period of enhancement in exposure limit up to March 31, 2021.
According to the circular issued, all other instructions related to the subject contained in letters no. EPD/5619/01(95)EC-2020 dated March 18, 2020, EPD/5779/01(95)EC-2020 dated March 20, 2020, EDP/7060/01(95)EC-2020 dated May 29, 2020 and EPD_31-8-2020_48076 dated September 10, 2020 shall remain unchanged.
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