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September 24, 2021 (MLN): The local bourse extended a bearish spell on Friday owing to the lack of positive triggers and a roll-over week.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has revised Prudential Regulations (PRs) for consumer financing to moderate imports and demand growth which has compelled investors to behave cautiously.

In addition, SBP has also asked commercial banks to provide information about imports worth $500,000. Prior to the revision, the banks had to submit information up to $1 million worth of imports.

These events have significantly sidelined the investors’ interest and succumbed the trading floor into profit booking activity which resulted in the benchmark KSE-100 index losing 223.36 points to close at 45,073.52.

The Index traded in a range of 563.30 points or 1.24 percent of the previous close, showing an intraday high of 45,421.70 and a low of 44,858.40.

Of the 95 traded companies in the KSE100 Index 28 closed up 64 closed down, while 3 remained unchanged. Total volume traded for the index was 186.69 million shares.

Sector wise, the index was let down by Commercial Banks with 63 points, Cement with 61 points, Automobile Assembler with 27 points, Technology & Communication with 20 points and Textile Composite with 16 points.

The most points taken off the index was by TRG which stripped the index of 26 points followed by MCB with 26 points, CHCC with 19 points, INDU with 18 points and FFBL with 13 points.

Sectors propping up the index were Oil & Gas Exploration Companies with 25 points, Chemical with 22 points, Automobile Parts & Accessories with 8 points, Inv. Banks / Inv. Cos. / Securities Cos. with 5 points and Real Estate Investment Trust with 1 points.

The most points added to the index was by COLG which contributed 23 points followed by HUBC with 14 points, ENGRO with 13 points, OGDC with 12 points and AGP with 11 points.

All Share Volume decreased by 74.24 Million to 369.54 Million Shares. Market Cap decreased by Rs.41.43 Billion.

Total companies traded were 510 compared to 514 from the previous session. Of the scrips traded 146 closed up, 351 closed down while 13 remained unchanged.

Total trades decreased by 13,933 to 121,843.

Value Traded decreased by 0.60 Billion to Rs.11.78 Billion

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September 24, 2021 (MLN): Overseas investors sold net securities worth Rs645.05 million during the week ended September 17, 2021, which was around Rs13.54 billion higher than last week's numbers.

According to a weekly report on Specially Convertible Rupee Accounts (SCRA) released by the State Bank of Pakistan, the gross sale of securities during the week was recorded at Rs.17.7 billion, which is around 54.1 percent lower than the figures recorded last week. Similarly, the total purchase of securities stood at Rs.17.1 billion, which is 30 percent lower than the prior week.

Over the week, the overall purchase of securities declined by Rs.7.34 billion while the net sale of securities tumbled by Rs.20.88 billion.

Apart from this, the inflow of remittance into these accounts stood at Rs.1.45 billion, while its outflow has been reported at Rs.6.43 billion.

The closing balance of SCRA was recorded at Rs.29.23 billion, which marks a decline of Rs.4.33 billion over the week.

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September 24, 2021 (MLN): Following a four-day winning streak, gold lost some ground on Friday in local bullion market, as the price of 24-karat gold slipped by Rs200 to close at Rs113,300 per tola.

Similarly, the price of 10-gram of 24k gold also dropped by Rs172 and was traded at Rs97,136 while the 10gm 22k gold was valued at Rs89,042, Karachi Sarafa and Jewellers Association reported.

On the contrary, the price of 24-karat silver remained stagnant at Rs1,400. Likewise, the price of 10-gram silver stayed flat at Rs1,200.27.

In the international market, gold demand slumped by $19 to $1,753 an ounce as higher yields hurt the non-interest-bearing asset. Meanwhile, silver was traded at $22.6 an ounce compared to $22.68 an ounce the day before.

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September 24, 2021 (MLN): Pakistani rupee (PKR) remained under pressure in today’s interbank session as the local unit fell by 5 paisa against the US dollar to close the trade at PKR 169.08.

On Thursday, the home unit has closed at PKR 169.03 in the interbank market.

In order to curtail the free movement of the dollar, support the balance of payment, and improve the valuation of the local unit, SBP has intervened with back-to-back strategies.

In this connection, SBP has asked commercial banks to provide information about imports worth $500,000. Moreover, the banks have also been asked to submit details about imports arriving in 5 days.

Furthermore, SBP has also revised the prudential regulations (PRs) on the side of Consumer Financing Loans to rein back the ballooning trade deficit amid a colossal rise in import bill.

The rupee traded within a range of 45 paisa per USD showing an intraday high bid of 169.40 and an intraday Low offer of 168.95.

During the week, the currency has lost 89 paisa against the greenback, as the previous week was concluded at PKR 168.19 per USD.

Within the Open Market, PKR was traded at 169.20 / 171.00 per USD.

According to the data compiled by Mettis Global, the local unit has depreciated by 6.82% or PKR 11.53 in the fiscal year-to-date against the USD. Similarly, the rupee has weakened by 5.47% or PKR 9.24 in CY21, with the month-to-date (MTD) position showing a decline of 1.59%.

Meanwhile, the currency lost 1 rupee to the Pound Sterling as the day's closing quote stood at PKR 231.79 per GBP, while the previous session closed at PKR 230.76 per GBP.

Similarly, PKR's value weakened by 48 paisa against EUR which closed at PKR 198.43 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.1.95 trillion for 7 days at 7.31 percent.

The overnight repo rate towards the close of the session was 7.30/7.40 percent, whereas the 1-week rate was 7.30/7.40 percent.

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September 24, 2021: European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde said on Friday that the potential collapse of the troubled Chinese real-estate giant Evergrande would have a "limited" impact on the eurozone.

Markets plunged at the beginning of the week by fears that Evergrande -- one of China's biggest developers in the crucial property sector -- would collapse under debts worth over $300 billion, taking other companies with it and serving a blow to the world economy.

"I have very vivid memories of the latest stock market developments in China that had a bearing across the world," Lagarde told news channel CNBC.

"But in Europe and in the euro area in particular, direct exposure would be limited," she said.

The struggles at Evergrande would have a "China-centric impact", Lagarde said, while officials at the ECB, wary of the interconnected nature of markets, were following developments closely.

The president of Evergrande Xu Jiayin was reported by Chinese state-owned media to have told group managers on Wednesday to "make every effort to fulfil" its payment obligations.

But market observers are keeping close tabs on the battered real estate firm, with no sign that it had paid interest to bondholders on a note due Thursday, though the group has a 30-day grace period to stump up before it is considered in default.

Commenting in the same interview on the risk of persistent inflation in the eurozone, above the ECB's two-percent target, Lagarde said the bank expected "a return to much more stability in the year to come because many of the causes of higher prices are temporary."

"A lot of it has to do with energy prices," the former French finance minister said, as short supply of natural gas in Europe has pushed bills up.

Lagarde also pointed to the end of VAT holidays in Europe, deployed last year to mitigate the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, as a temporary driver of inflation.

AFP/APP