Weekly Market Roundup

December 28, 2024 (MLN): Benefiting from the rollercoaster ride that led to a steep correction last week, opportunity hunters took the stage to capitalize on undervalued stocks.

Thus, the benchmark KSE-100 index started the week on a strong note, witnessing a 4,411.3 points rally on Monday, the second-largest single-day gain in the index's history.

However, subsequent sessions remained volatile and ultimately closed the index at 111,351.17, posting a modest weekly gain of 1,838.03 points or 1.68% WoW.

Intraday swings were significant, with the index reaching a high of 115,036.5 (+3,685.33 points) and a low of 109,858.88 (-1,492.3 points).

In USD terms, the index observed a slight improvement from last week’s 4.3% decline as it inched up by 1.66% this week.

In the T-bill auction, the SBP raised Rs913 billion, falling short of the Rs1.2 trillion target. The cut-off yields remained steady at 11.99% for 3- and 6-month papers and 12.29% for the 12-month tenor.

In addition, SBP reserves contracted by $228 million on a weekly basis due to external payments, clocking in at 11.9bn.

Despite the volatility, positive economic cues helped stabilize investor sentiment, pushing the KSE-100 index’s calendar year return to 78.3%, while fiscal year-to-date returns stood at 42%.

Top Index Movers

Sector-wise, Commercial Banks, Oil & Gas Marketing Companies, Investment Banks, and Technology & Communication were the top contributing sectors, adding 780.84, 336.9, 313.27, and 227.48 points, respectively.

Contrary to that, Cement, Power Generation & Distribution, and Textile Composite dented the index by 187.59, 101.65, and 33.4 points, respectively.

UBL emerged as the best-performing stock of the week, contributing 439.18 points to the index. It was followed by DAWH, ENGRO, TRG, and PSO, which added 313.59, 261.59, 225.84, and 213.34 points, respectively.

Conversely, FFC, LUCK, SYS, and CHCC weighed on the index, losing 251.67, 104.89, 91.62, and 73.99 points, respectively.

FIPI/LIPI

Foreign investors were net sellers once again during the week, offloading a significant $6.78m worth of equities.

Flow-wise, the leading sellers were foreign corporates, with a net sale of $6.15m.

On the other hand, local investors remained net buyers worth $6.78m. Among them, individuals emerged as the dominant buyers, with an investment of $14.92m.

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