Business

Pakistan stocks drop steeply as political uncertainty peaks

Published

1 year ago

Farwa

Market closes at 47,429.82 after losing 956.43 points.
Shares of 343 companies traded during session.
“Correction, after market hit 49,000, is here but will soon subside.”

KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Tuesday witnessed a steep decline after the benchmark KSE-100 fell by nearly 1,000 points as it went through a correction since jumping past the 49,000 mark.

The market closed the day on a negative note as it shed 956.43 points or 1.98% to settle at 47,429.82 points.

According to a report by Arif Habib Limited, the 48,000 mark proved to be pivotal and trade below saw downside momentum accelerate. “The correction that we had been anticipating since the market hit 49,000 is here but will soon subside,” it added.

However, there are several factors that weighed on the market sentiments including political uncertainty and the ambiguity surrounding the upcoming elections and caretaker set-up.

Pakistan-Kuwait Investment Company’s Head of Research Samiullah Tariq said that the stocks plunged as political jitters sparked a massive profit-taking spree with investors shedding risky assets in an overbought market amid economic headwinds that are far from losing strength — much less changing course in the near to medium term.

Head of Equities at Intermarket Securities Raza Jafri told Geo.tv that selling was witnessed in profit-taking in state-owned oil explorers which have yet to see an improvement in circular debt.

“In addition, it is possible that some redemptions may have come through given the KSE-100’s sharp Fiscal Year To Date (FYTD) rise in the backdrop of sustained high inflation. On the whole, it is not surprising to see episodic profit taking came through. Across FY24 however, Pakistan remains an excellent macro trade, with valuations likely to rerate when the interest rate cycle turns,” he added.

Shares of 343 companies were traded during the session. At the close of trading, 49 scrips closed in the green, 278 in the red, and 16 remained unchanged.

Cynergico PK Limited was the volume leader with 28.31 million shares traded, losing Rs0.33 to close at Rs3.47. It was followed by Oil & Gas Development Company Limited with 27.78 million shares traded, losing Rs7.72 to close at Rs97.85, and K-Electric Limited with 24.68 million shares gaining Rs0.13 to close at Rs2.10.

Business

SFD and Pakistan Sign Two Deals Totaling $1.61BLN

Published

1 day ago

Farwa

Two agreements totaling $1.61 billion have been inked by Pakistan and the Saudi Fund for Development to improve their bilateral economic cooperation.

Business

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan sign an MOU to strengthen their auditing industry collaboration.

Published

1 day ago

Farwa

A spokesperson for the office of the Auditor-General of Pakistan (AGP) announced on Monday that the two countries have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation in public sector auditing through improved cooperation between audit institutions of both countries, as well as training programs and the exchange of trainers.

This comes as a group from Saudi Arabia’s General Court of Audit (GCA), headed by GCA President Dr. Hussam bin Abdulmohsen Alangari, arrived in Pakistan on Sunday for a four-day visit.

The agreement was signed during AGP Muhammad Ajmal Gondal’s meeting with the Saudi delegates, aiming to strengthen audit cooperation, enhance knowledge-sharing, and improve governance, transparency and accountability in government spending.

Public relations officer Muhammad Raza Irfan of the AGP’s office told Arab News that the deal will further advance bilateral collaboration between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in addition to enhancing professional ties between the two nations’ auditing institutions.

In a statement released from his office, AGP Gondal was cited as saying, “This collaboration marks a significant step toward fostering international cooperation in auditing.”

“The exchange of ideas and methodologies will undoubtedly strengthen our capacity to meet emerging challenges and set new benchmarks for public accountability.”

Discussions at Monday’s meeting focused on fostering closer ties between the Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, sharing innovative audit methodologies, and planning collaborative initiatives for the future, according to the AGP office.

The two parties decided to increase their knowledge of theme, environmental, and impact audits as well as to exchange best practices in audit standards, performance audits, and citizen participation audits.

The statement added, “It also agreed to exchange trainers, address new auditing challenges, plan cooperative audits, including a performance audit on the oil and gas sector in 2025, and work together on training programs.”

Both sides reaffirmed their shared commitment to promoting transparency, accountability and excellence in public sector auditing.

Business

The government chooses to continue the PIA privatization process.

Published

1 day ago

Farwa

The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) privatization process will be restarted by the federal government, and expressions of interest would be requested within the month. Officials stated that the Prime Minister’s Committee on Privatization will convene to make the final decision.

Usman Bajwa, the secretary of the Privatization Commission, gave a briefing on the updated procedure to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Privatization. Additionally, he disclosed that airlines other than PIA are now able to compete with regional carriers thanks to IMF-approved aircraft tax concessions.

Farooq Sattar, the chairman of the privatization committee, underlined the importance of giving PIA workers at least five years of job security. Employee protection will continue to be a top priority and will be resolved prior to bidding, the Privatization Commission promised.

PIA’s liabilities totaling Rs650 billion have already been assumed by the government, and an additional Rs45 billion in outstanding debts must be paid before the privatization process can begin. As of the now, PIA has assets around Rs155 billion and liabilities worth Rs200 billion. It will be necessary for the new buyer to expand the fleet by 15 to 20 aircraft.

Additionally, the Privatization Committee has sought a timeline for the privatization of Faisalabad, Gujranwala, and Islamabad Electric Supply Companies. Officials stated that after the appointment of a financial advisor, the privatization process for these companies will accelerate.