The Pakistan Stock Exchange clawed back into positive territory by midday on Friday, after opening weak and dipping as much as 150 points below Thursday’s close.
The benchmark KSE 100 Index had closed Thursday at 177,322.77 points, down 47.93 points, or 0.03 percent, following a volatile session that saw gains built through the morning wiped out by afternoon selling.
As of 11:55am, the index stood at 177,720.04 points, up 397.27 points, or 0.22 percent, from Thursday’s close. That marks a solid recovery from the early session, when the index had slipped to 177,189.17 by 9:30am on profit taking.
The day’s range so far runs from a low of 177,165.27 to a high of 177,823.26, a swing of about 658 points. Trading has been active, with volume crossing 94.1 million shares by midday.
Zooming out, the index is up 20.62 percent over the past year and 2.11 percent so far this calendar year. Its 52 week range stretches from 144,119.44 to 191,032.73, so today’s level still sits well below the year’s peak.
Movers of the day
Among the most actively traded stocks, Cnergyico led volume with a gain of 2.85 percent, while Pakistan Refinery jumped 5.56 percent and Data Sciences climbed 5.53 percent. On the other side, Macter International was the heaviest faller among actively traded names, down 3.82 percent.
A handful of stocks hit their daily upper price limits. First Pak Modaraba, First Fidelity Leasing Modaraba, Gharibwal Cement, Leiner Pak Gelatine, and Buxly Paints all touched the 10 percent cap on gains.
On the losing side, Arpak International, S.G. Power (R), and Al Shaheer Corp preference shares all hit their 10 percent lower limit. Pace Pakistan and Ghani Global Wind Power (R) also posted sharp declines, down 9.11 percent and 8.86 percent respectively.
The morning dip carried over from Thursday’s choppy close, when a late sell off erased earlier gains. But buying interest picked up as the session went on, pulling the index off its lows and back above the 177,700 mark by midday.
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