Market traded range bound today with an oscillation of ~300pts between +188pts and -128pts. The index closed -9pts (unadjusted), however, it virtually touched 44k level intra-day. Investors were already perturbed about the coming short roll-over week, which has generally brought selling pressure, and also had to face a fresh threat as highlighted by FO press conference, relayed in the last hour of trading. Investors, in general, resorted to profit booking rather than carrying positions over the weekend. Key stocks in Banks, E&P and O&GMCs helped the index stay afloat. Last half hour saw brisk activity in Steel sector that improved the price performance of underlying stocks. Among scrips, PRL topped the volumes with 38M shares, followed by FFL (31.4M) and KEL (28.6M).

· The Index closed at 43,741pts as against 43,767pts showing a decline of 26pts (-0.1% DoD). Sectors contributing to the performance include O&GMCs (+21pts), Autos (+14pts), Banks (+14pts), Fertilizer (-42pts) and Cement (-26pts).

· Volumes declined from 497.5mn shares to 482.6mn shares (-3% DoD). Average traded value on the contrary increased by 5% to reach US$ 148.2mn as against US$ 140.8mn.

· Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes include PRL, FFL, KEL, ICIBL and PAEL, which formed 30% of total volumes.

· Stocks that contributed positively to the index include PSO (+28pts), THALL (+15pts), ANL (+14pts), HBL (+10pts) and NBP (+9pts). Stocks that contributed negatively include ENGRO (-34pts), PPL (-11pts), HUBC (-10pts), KTML (-7pts) and KOHC (-7pts).