Pakistan Stock Exchange witnesses buying trend

Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a positive trend on Friday, with the benchmark index gaining more than 373 points during the final day of the business week, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

When trading was suspended for Friday prayers, the Pakistan Stock Exchange benchmark KSE-100 Index was hovering at 177,696, up by 446.44 points or 0.25 percent.

Trading took place in the shares of a total of 568 companies. The shares of 257 companies saw a decline, while shares of 202 companies experienced a rise. Over 650 million shares, valued at more than Rs31 billion, were traded in the stock market. 

Buying interest was seen in key sectors, including automobile assemblers, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs, power generation and refineries. Index-heavy stocks, including ARL, HUBCO, MARI, OGDC, PPL, PSO, HBL and NBP, traded in the green.

Earlier on Thursday, PSX remained in consolidation as late-session profit-taking offset early gains, leaving the benchmark Index marginally lower, while broader market indicators also closed mostly in negative territory amid selective investor positioning. The benchmark KSE-100 Index closed at 177,322.78 points, down 47.93 points, or 0.03%.

Internationally, shares in Asia turned cautious on Friday after a Nvidia-fuelled technology rally, while currency and bond markets held their breath for the world’s most powerful central banker to speak on US interest rates.

Oil prices were headed for weekly losses as Iran and Oman had agreed on administering traffic in the Strait of Hormuz ‌and sharing revenues, though Washington has shown little interest in reviving direct talks with Tehran.

Brent eased 0.1% to $89.63 a barrel but was set for a weekly drop of over 5%.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged up 0.1%, while Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.5%.

S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures were off 0.1%, while EURO STOXX 50 futures edged up 0.3%.

All eyes are on the Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole Symposium, where chair Kevin Warsh is slated to speak later in the day.

Three Fed officials have already sounded the alarm about sticky inflation, but the new central bank chief has resisted providing forward guidance about where interest rates are going.