FLASHNEWS:

JS Securities Limited – Weekly Review (26 May 2023)

Karachi, May 26, 2023 (PPI-OT): Bears remain in charge, KSE-100 loses 1.5% WoW

The week started on a negative note over worsening political situation and ongoing delay in resumption of the IMF program. This negative momentum persisted as investors sought to secure profits amid mixed developments on the political and the macro landscape. The benchmark index closed the week at 40,964, (-1.5% WoW). With a slight decline in trading volumes as compared to last week, value traded remained similar to previous week's levels. Budget related news continued this week with news reports pertaining to government's macro targets.

Federal government reportedly targets fiscal deficit at 5% of GDP, with a revenue target of around Rs9trn for FY24. On IMF front, the stance regarding continued talks was maintained by both government and IMF officials. Notices by listed companies started to pour in, announcing increases in share capital during the latter half of the week after the proposal of tax imposition on distributable reserves of listed and non-listed companies by the reforms commission surfaced. SBP reserves declined by US$119mn to US$4.2bn translating into an import cover of around 1 month.