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Bulls hold sway on LSE

RECORDER REPORT

LAHORE: Following a rumour about the likelihood of signing of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) by the Government of Pakistan, bulls went on a rampage on the Lahore Stock Exchange (LSE) here on Monday pushing the index up by 11.64 points amid the highest ever volume traded. The index crossed the psychological barrier of 400 points.

The market resumed trading on a positive note and as soon as the rumour regarding the signing of the CTBT by Pakistan hit the market, it took an upward direction. As a result, a number of issues, especially PTCL scored handsome gains.

On the other hand, Engro Chemical, PSO and SSGC were among the major losers. The bull-run may continue to persist on January 17, said the market analysts.

The bull-run continued till the second half of the closing session. After that the market started showing downward trend, which, according to analysts, was the outcome of profit-taking emerging from different counters. However, it closed on a positive note.

The LSE 101-share index was up by 11.64 points to 408.62 points from 396.98 points of the last clearing day of the past week. The volume ascended to 174.089 million shares as against 108.483 million shares of the previous close.

The prime reason that contributed to the day's upsurge of the equity values was the rumour about signing the CTBT by the Government, said Dr. Shahid Zia of Zafar Securities.

He said that another peculiar feature of the day was the abnormally high trade volume. The turnover of the individual scrips also reached a record high, he added.

During the last minutes of the concluding session the market showed weak signs yet the bulls did not allow the bears to enter the ring and closed on a positive note. However, it was too early to say whether this weakness was the result of a technical correction or a reversal of equity values, he stated.

There were 49 gainers to 28 losers while 5 scrips did not change their earlier positions.

Among the major gainers, PTCL improved its worth by Rs 2.65, Indus Fruits was up by Rs 2.00, Ddabhoy Cement Rs 1.56, ICP Rs 1.10 while umer Fabrics and Kohinoor Energy gained Re. 1.00 each.

Among the major losers, Engro Chemical lost its value by Rs 4.10, PSO was down by Rs 3.75, SSGC Rs 2.25, Adamjee Insurance Rs 2.00 and SNGPL Rs 1.55.

PTCL was the leader of the market with a total traded volume of 131.835 million shares followed by ICI and with turnover of 9.719 million shares.