In a mixed day for Pakistan’s financial markets, the KSE-100 index closed Thursday’s trading session with a modest gain of 41.82 points, ending at 74,878.12. The Pakistani Rupee (PKR) experienced a slight depreciation against the US Dollar, while gold prices saw a notable decrease.
KSE-100 Index Performance
- Closing Details: The KSE-100 index rose by 41.82 points (0.06%), closing at 74,878.12. The index fluctuated within a 714.68 point range, peaking at 75,300.03 (+463.73) and hitting a low of 74,585.35 (-250.95).
- Volume and Trading: Total trading volume was 175.8 million shares. Out of the 100 indexed companies, 42 closed up, 53 closed down, and 5 were unchanged.
Sector Performance
- Supporting Sectors: Cement (+130.06pts), Automobile Assembler (+57.45pts), Leather & Tanneries (+43.2pts), Power Generation & Distribution (+27.77pts), and Engineering (+20.45pts) bolstered the index.
- Declining Sectors: Fertilizer (-94.39pts), Commercial Banks (-63.62pts), Oil & Gas Exploration Companies (-26.32pts), Miscellaneous (-19.4pts), and Oil & Gas Marketing Companies (-17.26pts) dragged the index lower.
Major Contributors
- Positive Contributors: MTL (+59.09pts), SRVI (+43.2pts), FCCL (+32.79pts), LUCK (+32.14pts), PPL (+29.77pts).
- Negative Contributors: FFC (-51.44pts), MARI (-41.1pts), ENGRO (-32.79pts), MCB (-29.17pts), PSEL (-19.73pts).
Broader Market
- All-Share Index: The broader All-Share index closed at 48,334.64, losing 84.83 points. Total market volume was 410.58 million shares, with a traded value of Rs14.92 billion across 194,871 trades.
Pakistani Rupee Performance
The PKR depreciated by 9.94 paisa against the USD, closing at PKR 278.5 per USD. In the open market, the dollar was quoted at 277.25 for buying and 280.00 for selling.
Exchange Rates Against Major Currencies
- Euro: Gained 72.78 paisa, closing at 301.01.
- British Pound: Fell by 1.34 rupees, closing at 353.93.
- Swiss Franc: Gained 94.73 paisa, closing at 306.01.
- Japanese Yen: Lost 0.25 paisa, closing at 1.7741.
- Chinese Yuan: Gained 2.54 paisa, closing at 38.43.
- Saudi Riyal: Gained 2.46 paisa, closing at 74.25.
- U.A.E Dirham: Increased by 3.12 paisa, closing at 75.8.
Gold and Silver Prices
- Gold: The price of 24-karat gold dropped by Rs1,500 to Rs241,200 per tola. The Karachi Sarafa Association reported 24-karat gold at Rs206,790 per 10-gram, down by Rs1,286, and 22-karat gold at Rs189,558 per 10-gram.
- Silver: Prices remained unchanged with 24-karat silver at Rs2,900 per tola and Rs2,486.28 per 10-gram.
Global Market Influence
- Spot Gold: Traded near $2,333 an ounce, down 0.22%.
- Investor Sentiment: Investors are cautious amid expectations of sustained higher U.S. interest rates, which reduces the attractiveness of non-yielding assets like gold.
Conclusion
The financial markets displayed a mix of modest gains and losses, reflecting ongoing economic volatility. The KSE-100 index’s slight rise was overshadowed by the weakening of the PKR and the decline in gold prices, indicating cautious investor sentiment amid broader economic uncertainties.
