Weekly Market Roundup

August 02, 2024 (MLN): The benchmark KSE-100 Index closed this week at 78,226 showing an increase of 196 points or 0.3%.

On the currency front, the Pakistani Rupee recorded a marginal decline of 0.06% WoW. In USD terms, the KSE-100 index gained 0.2%.

Throughout the week, KSE-100 traded in a range of 1,731 points, between a high of 79,327 (+1,298) and a low of 77,596 (-434) points.

PSX average traded volume was recorded at 357.85 million shares worth Rs17 billion, marking an increase of 6.2% WoW in the number of shares and 8.7% WoW in traded value.

Meanwhile, the PSX market capitalization decreased by $76.81m or 0.2% to $37.25bn over the week. In PKR terms, market capitalization stood at Rs10.37 trillion.

On the economic front, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) lowered its key policy rate by another 100 basis points to 19.5% on Monday. The reduction was the second in a row, bringing the total decrease since June 2024 to 250bps.

The decision came just weeks after the country secured a 37-month International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Extended Fund Arrangement (EFF) worth $7 billion.

Yearly inflation in July 2024 slowed to a 33-month low of 11.1% compared to 12.6% in the last month and 28.3% in July 2023. However, on a monthly basis, CPI jumped 2.1% in July 2024, the highest in eight months.

Top Index Movers

Sector-wise, top positive contributors were Fertilizer (+489pts), Refinery (+68pts), Power Generation & Distribution (+63pts), Oil & Gas Exploration Companies (+58pts), and Pharmaceuticals (+36pts).

Contrary to that, negative contributions came from Cement (-207pts), Commercial Banks (-135pts), Technology & Communication, (-66pts), Inv. Banks / Inv. Cos. / Securities Cos. (-65pts), and Oil & Gas Marketing Companies (-26pts).

The best-performing stocks during the week were FFC (+479pts), POL (+70pts), MEBL (+49pts), ATRL (+34pts), and SEARL (+31pts).

Earnings season that kicked off earlier last month took center stage during the week.

Read Earnings Related Stories: Q2 2024 Earnings

Fauji Fertilizer Company Limited's (FFC), the top-performer of the week, earnings jumped almost three times to Rs15.55 billion during the quarter ending June 2024.

Whereas, BAFL, DAWH, SYS, KOHC, and EFERT collectively took away 326 points from the index.

FIPI/LIPI

Foreign investors were net sellers during the week, dumping $2.23m worth of equities.

Flow-wise, Insurance Companies were the dominant buyers, with a net investment of $1.78m.

They allocated the majority of their capital, $1.42m, to Cement, while divesting from the Commercial Banks sector, amounting to $0.94m in sales.

On the other hand, the leading sellers were Other Organization, with a net sale of $1.75m.

Their most substantial sales activity was in Commercial Banks, amounting to $0.73m, while they acquired $0.21m of equities in the Cement.

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