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Wednesday, 30 January, 2013
KSE benchmark index breaks previous records KARACHI
D
ISMAIL DILAWAR
R I v E N by a strong positive outlook about the ongoing earning announcement session, the Karachi share market on Tuesday peaked to another historic high of 17,172.04 points. Having witnessed the lowest close of 765.74 points some 14 years ago on July 14, 1998, the benchmark KSE-100 share index on Tuesday was at one point seen climbing to the intra-day high of 17,181.39 points. The day saw the index gaining 167.05 points or 0.98 percent to close at 17,172.04 points against Monday’s 17,004.99 points. During the day the index also dipped to the intra-day low of 16,990.58 points. The free-float KSE-30 index also set in the green zone and increased by 147.96 points to 14,044.29 points compared to 13,896.33 points of the previous session.
Of the total 360 scrip trades, 184 ended up as gainers, 154 as losers and 22 saw no change in the price of their stakes. “The stocks closed at all time high led by blue chip stocks across the board on strong earnings outlook,” viewed Ashen Mehanti, a senior equity analyst and director at Arif Habib Securities. The analyst said the trading volumes remained high amid speculations ahead of the major earning announcements due this week. The trading turnover at the readycounter was recorded at 197 million, up by 8 million shares against Monday’s 189 million. According to KSE data, the benchmark index had marked the highest turnover of 1.122 billion shares in the last decade on April 16, 2004. On that day the market capitalisation was recorded at Rs 1.489 trillion against Rs 4.285 trillion on Tuesday. Telecard Limited appeared to be Tuesday’s volume leader by counting its traded shares at 34.705 million. The
company’s share price rose during the day from Rs 2.71 to close at Rs 3.43. Fauji Cement, D.G Khan Cement, Engro Corporation, WordlCall Telecom, Jahangir Siddiqui Company, Maple Leaf Cement, Byco Petroleum, Engro Foods and TRG Pakistan were other well-per-
forming stocks on Tuesday. On the futures market, the turnover rose to 13.8 million shares from 8.98 million of a day earlier. Other contributable factors cited by the stocks analysts for Tuesday’s all time high included falling treasury yields and
CY12 saw fertilizer output depressed KARACHI STAFF REPORT
The production of country’s premier fertilizer, urea, witnessed a decline of 15 percent YoY during calendar year 2012. Such has been the impact of gas curtailment on urea production, especially on the plants that are supplied gas through Sui Northern Gas Pipelines (SNGP) network, said analysts at InvestCap Research. The production of the sector
contracted by 734,000 tons in volumetric terms, they said. Likewise, the analysts said the CAN production also declined by a massive 21% YoY to 475,000 tons. DAP production on the other hand was not as severely impacted by gas issues and came down by 1.9 % YoY to 645,000 tons compared to last year. During CY12, urea off-take posted negative growth of 12%YoY to 5.2 million tons as compared to 5.92 million tons in CY11. Such a large decline was attributed
largely to the ever increasing urea prices, on average reaching Rs 1,740 per bag- up by 22% YoY. However, DAP take off registered a growth of 6.2% YoY to 1.19 million tons during the said period as its selling price increased by only a nominal 2.1% YoY to Rs3,946 per bag. Moreover, NP posted record sales of 491,000 tons (a 47% rise YoY) as production from Fatima Fertilizer improved sales volume of said fertilizer. With low production of fertilizer on the local front,
as a whole the local industry is losing share in the market to rising imports. Urea lost its market share by 4pps YoY to 79%, local DAP reduced its contribution in total sales volume by 7pps YoY to 51% in CY12. Going forward, the analysts said, any positive news on supply of gas will play a vital role as far as fertilizer production was concerned. However, the implementation of gas supply from the new gas fields still remains a question mark.
Lahore becomes 2nd largest jewellery production hub
Tax collection has doubled during present govt: Hafeez Shaikh
ISLAMABAD: Lahore has become the 2nd largest jewellery production hub of Pakistan after Karachi, as more than 25,000 business enterprises related to gems and jewellery are operating in Punjab, providing employment to more than 200,000 individuals. Traditionally Lahore has always been a land of finesse artisans and this tradition has transcended in the jewellery industry as well. Continuing its progress on the mandate of development of gems and jewellery industry, Pakistan Gems and Jewellery Development Company (PGJDC) has established a Gems and Jewellery Training and Manufacturing Centre (GJTMC) at Lahore. The centre is successfully providing training and common facility services to the gems and jewellery industry of Punjab. An official said the training centre is not only for jewellers but for everybody who wants to learn to design jewellery. “With its new approach in jewellery making, GJTMC will help refine artistic abilities to making jewellery while working in a creative and rewarding jewellery profession,” said the official. Classes are taught through live demonstrations and lectures supported by multimedia presentations and comprehensive exercises which provide students with a rich and rewarding learning experience in the best suited environment. The official said GJTMC Lahore possesses a highly qualified, immensely experienced and very dedicated faculty who helps the students bring forth their creativity and convert dream ideas into beautiful jewellery pieces. In an effort to further support the growing industrialisation of the province, PGJDC intends to open a GJTMC in thriving gems and jewellery industry of Sargodha in the near future. APP
Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh said on Monday that tax collection has more than doubled during five years of the government, rising from Rs 1 trillion in 2008-09 to Rs 2 trillion in 2012-13. “We have tried to collect taxes from rich and wealthy people under a planned strategy in an effort to raise revenue for development,” he said while responding to media persons at the Brands of the Year Award ceremony at a hotel. The minister said the government has also contained its expenses to 6 percent of the GDP which is well below the inflation rates in the country. He pointed out that federal government has provided an additional Rs 5 trillion to the provinces under National Finance Commission (NFC) Award. Now it was up to the people and the civil society to ask the provinces where they have spent these funds, he added. Shaikh said the provinces have raised their expenses by 21 percent after receiving additional funds from the federation. “Before NFC, provinces were having 48 percent of the divisible pool. Now they have 70 percent and if funds to FATA and AJK are added, this total comes to more than 77 percent,” he said. He noted that the federal government has paid Rs
ISLAMABAD APP
1600 billion to subsidise the rates of electricity for people. Similarly, the government spent Rs 210 billion under cash transfers for low income groups, he said. Responding to a question, he said Pakistan did not borrow a single US dollar from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) since May 2010. “In fact, we have paid back $ 2.5 billion to IMF on our debt,” he added.
record earning announcements for the cement and oil sector stocks. These stimuli, Mehanti said, played a catalyst’s role in the bullish activity at KSE despite the investors’ concern for the falling fertilizer take off data. Tuesday’s boom took the total paid up capital at the KSE to over Rs 1.094 trillion. This figure had staggered at Rs 211.313 billion on July 14, 1998 when the KSE-100 share index had nosedived to the lowest close of 765.74 points. The maximum increase of 960.50 points in the index, the KSE said, was witnessed on June 24, 2008 when the benchmark index had closed at 12,122.67 points. While at maximum the index had dropped by 696.25 points to close at 14,075.83 points on the 31st of December 2007. According to KSE market highlights, the highest market capital of Rs 4.329 trillion was recorded at the country’s largest bourse on December 31, 2007, the day when the KSE-100 share index plunged to the lowest level of 765.74 points.
IFC, BankIslami sign accord to give Pakistani firms global access KARACHI: IFC, member of the World Bank Group, and BankIslami Pakistan Limited on Tuesday signed an agreement that will help local companies access global import and export markets, spurring trade, production, economic growth and job creation. The agreement sees BankIslami joining IFC’s Global Trade Finance Program, which promotes trade in emerging markets by supporting the flow of goods and services. Under this agreement, IFC will support BankIslami’s trade finance business by providing partial or full guarantees for individual trade transactions. “IFC guarantees will help Pakistan’s private sector access global markets and in turn contribute to economic growth and job creation,” said BankIslami Chief Executive Officer Hasan Bilgrami. “It is a testament to the strong business franchising and expanding market share of BankIslami in general and in the Islamic banking sector in particular,” he said. Since the trade finance program’s inception in Pakistan in 2006, IFC has provided more than 3,500 guarantees worth $1.74 billion to financial institutions, helping to drive trade and create jobs. “Trade finance is the engine of an estimated $14 trillion in annual global commerce,” said IFC Director for Financial Markets and PE Funds for Europe, Central Asia, Middle East and North Africa K Aftab Ahmed. “With easy and affordable access to trade finance, local entrepreneurs can reach new markets, grow their businesses, and hire more employees,” he added. Close to 85 percent of IFC’s trade finance guarantees in Pakistan covered the import of products which are crucial for sustainable economic growth. Those included food and raw materials used in industrial production. Pakistan is a priority country for IFC. During the last three years, IFC has ramped up its investments and advisory services work in the country, supporting the development of Pakistan’s private sector. STAFF REPORT
Trading in National Saving Bonds suspended
KARACHI: The front regulators at Karachi Stocks Exchange (KSE) on Tuesday declared suspension of trading in the National Saving Bonds (NSB) of three years maturity. The suspension was notified in view of the announcement made by the Ministry of Finance Central Directorate of National Savings about the final dates of book closures. The book closure days ranged from January 18 to 29 for the redemption of NSB of three-year maturities. “Trading in the subject bonds would be suspended with effect from January 30 (2013) followed by its delisting,” said an official notice issued by the KSE on Tuesday. The regulator would notify the delisting of the saving bonds through a separate communiqué after all formalities are fulfilled. STAFF REPORT
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Wednesday, 30 January, 2013
Textiles exports contribute $40.2b to national kitty ISLAMABAD APP
The export of textiles products is witnessing a boost as the sector contributed around $ 40.2 billion precious foreign exchange to the national kitty during the last three years. Per year-wise break-up, Pakistan earned $ 10.3 billion through exports of textiles products during 2009-10, $ 13.8 billion during 2010-11 and US $ 12.5 billion during 2011-12. A senior official on Tuesday said in the first quarter of current year 2012-13 (Jul-Sep) the exports of textiles products have been recorded at $ 3.60 billion which is a good sign. He said during the last five years the exports of textile sector have seen an increasing trend from $ 10.3 billion to $ 12.5 billion, registering an increase of around 20%. Enumerating the measures adopted during the period, the official said a detailed in-house analysis has been conducted as a result of which Textiles Policy (2009-14) document was prepared by the Ministry of Textile to identify the loopholes. He said the Textiles Policy (200914) was duly approved by the cabinet in which various initiatives were stated to support the textile sector. Moreover, the official said the government was taking a number of initiatives to strengthen and support value-added products of cotton. The indicative list of such interventions are drawbacks of local taxes & levies scheme, Employees Old-Age Benefits Institution (EOBI) and social security contribution reimbursement scheme for women and handicapped, mark-up rate support scheme for textile sector, export finance mark-up rate support scheme, duty free import of textile related machinery facility, refund of past R&D support claims, establishment of garment cities at Lahore and Faisalabad and establishment of Pakistan textile city, Karachi.
Budgeting system shows remarkable improvement: report ISLAMABAD APP
Pakistan’s rank in Open Budget Index has increased to 50 during the year 2012 which was recorded at 38 in 2008 and 2010. According to the survey conducted by International Budget Partnership-an independent budget transparency survey organisation-Pakistan has scored 58 points out of a 100. A statement issued by the Ministry of Finance on Tuesday said the report reflected significant improvement and demonstrated the government’s commitment to achieve budget comprehensiveness and transparency. In its latest `Open Budget Survey’ report 2012, the International Budget Partnership has acknowledged improvement in comprehensiveness of the budget that has been achieved through the Medium-Term Budgetary Framework reform supported by the Department for International Development (DFID), UK from 2003 to 2011 and implemented by the Finance Division under the guidance of the Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh. It further said that the international best practices include publishing of eight key budgetary documents at various points in the budget cycle. Pakistan’s score of 58 out of 100 is higher than the average score of 43 for all the 100 surveyed countries. The Open Budget Survey report appreciated that Pakistan’s pre-budget statement, called the `Budget Strategy Paper’ was adequately prepared and advised its publication. The Budget Strategy Paper that presents mid-
Business 02
year review, medium-term fiscal framework and government’s policies, will improve budget transparency and encourage people of Pakistan to provide their comments on policies and related finances that impact their daily lives, it added. The survey report also acknowledges that presentation of the ‘Green Book’ in the Parliament together with the annual budget has increased the comprehensiveness of the budget by many folds. The `Green Book’ provides policy priorities, performance definition, and budget by services to be delivered over the next 3 years. The Green Book is an important document for the Parliamentary Standing Committees that should review it at the time of budget presentation (through at least a month long review budget process as opposed to the existing 12 days), and monitor performance on a regular basis. The survey report suggests publishing a citizen’s budget report together with the annual budget. A citizen’s budget is a non-technical presentation to enable broad public understanding of government’s plans for raising revenues and spending public funds in order to achieve policy goals. In addition, the survey report also suggests that Pakistan should publish a `mid-year review report’ that provides actual expenditure of the past six months vis-à-vis the original enacted budget including changes made by the Executive in the budget and movement between budget heads. The survey report also suggests for providing a year-end report that should include performance achieved vis-à-vis the performance planned in addition to the expenditure against budget. The performance monitoring report is vital for people of Pakistan to understand what the government has delivered by using their taxes.
ECC allowed gas companies for managing gas load on their own ISLAMABAD APP
The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet agreed that gas companies should be allowed to manage gas load on their own, while observing general priority order including curtailment programme. The ECC which met on Tuesday under the chairmanship of Federal Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh also discussed various agenda items. The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Resources submitted natural gas
load management principles for approval of the ECC. In the backdrop of load shedding in power sector the Ministry of Water & Power had requested for enhanced gas supply to power plants on SNGPL system. It was decided that first priority order will be given to the domestic and commercial sectors while power and general industries sectors will be accorded second and third priority respectively. Whereas cement sector will be on fourth and CNG sectors will be on fifth priority. The ECC also accorded its approval to marginal/standard gas fields pricing criteria and guidelines, 2013,
submitted by the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Resources. The guidelines provide for pricing structure applicable to the oil or gas reservoirs that cannot be exploited economically under the existing E&P Policies, pricing structure and available technologies. The ECC approved the proposal of the ministry to set the Marginal Fields Gas prices in accordance with Petroleum Exploration & Production Policy 2012 with an additional premium of $ 0.25 per MMBTU for the three zones as defined in Petroleum Exploration & Production Policy 2012.
It was also decided that the government shall have the first right to purchase pipelines specification gas from the Marginal Gas Fields at a price to be determined in accordance with the above mentioned pricing formula. Secretary Cabinet Division presented a report on implementation of the decisions taken by the ECC. It was informed that since the induction of present democratic government in March 2008, 89 percent of the decisions taken by the ECC have been implemented while the remaining decisions are in the process of implementation.
Major Gainers SYMBOL
CLOSE
CHANGE
UPFL
4,080.00
175.00
ULEVER
9,994.20
110.94
COLG
1,446.00
68.50
BATA
1,385.00
30.00
SHEZ
450.94
21.47
Volume Leaders SYMBOL TELE FCCL DGKC ENGRO WTL
CLOSE 3.43 7.95 55.57 95.60 2.65
CHANGE 0.72 -0.17 1.24 3.80 0.22
VOLUME 34,705,500 18,978,500 13,244,000 11,373,400 8,813,500
Major Losers SYMBOL NESTLE MFFL SIEM IDYM AGTL
CLOSE 4,693.75 321.00 640.00 677.60 225.40
CHANGE -106.25 -11.50 -7.5 -5.77 -4.60
Interbank Rates USD GBP JPY EURO
97.6711 153.3925 1.0779 131.2505
Forex Rates US Dollar Euro Great Britain Pound Japanese Yen Canadian Dollar Hong Kong Dollar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal
BUY
SELL
98.40 131.66 153.96 1.0743 96.99 12.49 26.70 26.20
99.10 133.88 156.52 1.0915 99.25 12.77 27.10 26.54
Lahore Stock Exchange gains 42.33 points LAHORE: Lahore Stock Exchange on Tuesday witnessed a bullish trend by gaining 42.33 points as the LSE-25 Index opened with 4108.26 and closed at 4150.59 points. The market’s overall situation, however, did not correspond to an upward trend as it remained at 3.487 million shares to close against a previous turnover of 4.535 million shares, showing a downward move of 1.048 million shares. APP
No plan to privatise Steel Mills: Khurshid ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Syed Khurshid Shah on Tuesday said the government had no plan to privatise Steel Mills. He said this during a meeting with a delegation of Steel Mills Union which called on him. The delegation was led by CBA Chairman Shamshad Qureshi. The delegation apprised the minister about their reservations regarding privatisation of Steel Mills, who strongly rejected the rumours. APP
CORPORATE CORNER
Thai Airways increases flights LAHORE: Thai Airways International Pakistan is pleased to announce that Thai Airways is increasing their flights from Pakistan as per the following schedule. From Feb 20, TG will operate 6 days from Lahore instead of 5 – Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. From Nov 30, 2012, TG is operating 5 flights from Karachi instead of 4 – Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. From Dec 1, 2012, TG is operating four flights from Islamabad instead of three – Monday, Wednesay, Friday and Saturday. PR
Farzana Raja appreciates NADRA for facilitating BISP ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister and Chairperson BISP Madame Farzana Raja has appreciated NADRA’s role in supporting BISP’s initiatives and facilitating the issuance of CNICs and Benazir Debit Cards (BDCs). In a meeting with Mr. Tariq Malik, Chairman NADRA, she said NADRA is playing a pivotal role in the implementation of BISP’s technology based initiatives and its contribution at every stage of effective implementation of Pakistan’s largest social safety net programme is commendable. The minister
praised NADRA’s vital partnership in BISP’s technology based payment mechanisms and issuance of BDCs. She lauded NADRA’s commitment to register poor people, especially marginalized women from far-flung areas and appreciated its swift response in issuing CNICs to eligible BISP beneficiaries to enable them to benefit from BISP’s initiatives. PR
Colours of ASEAN at Beach Luxury Hotel
Abu Dhabi Group expands its investment in Pakistan LAHORE: Abu Dhabi Group, a large business conglomerate in the Middle East and a major investor in Pakistan, has announced that it has acquired SingTel’s shares in Warid Telecom. With 100% ownership in Warid Telecom, Abu Dhabi Group has further reinforced its commitment to the company. This strategic decision will allow the Group to have a more focused approach as Warid enters its 8th year of operations in Pakistan. “The Abu Dhabi Group has a diverse investment portfolio in Pakistan and is one of the leading foreign investors in the country. With this step of acquiring complete control of Warid Telecom, the Group is reaffirming its commitment to Warid and the belief that the Pakistani telecom sector is set to grow further. The Group plans to continue to improve Warid Telecom’s operation in Pakistan by introducing new technologies, services and packages.” PR
KARACHI: ASEAN Women and Friends is a nonprofit association formed in 1998 to promote cultural, social and educational exchanges amongst its members and the host country, Pakistan. Welcoming the delegation, Ms. Natasha Saleem, President of ASEAN Women & Friends spoke on the occasion to appreciate the efforts of the delegation in their support towards this generous cause and helped achieving the goal of AWFA to help the poor and needy people of the society. The event was attended by highly distinguished diplomats, media and most prominent business entities. The inaugural ceremony was followed by a colorful cultural show. The foreigners attired in their national distinctive costumes presented their traditional dances, expressing the richness of their respective cultures. The guests and performers included diplomats from Indonesia, China, Singapore, vietnam, Malaysia,
Philippines, Taiwan, Japan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, USA, United Kingdom and Pakistan. PR
Optimus G shines with multiple industry accolades LAHORE: LG announced that its most advanced and featurerich smartphone, Optimus G, has been recognized by the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Innovations 2013 Design and Engineering Awards in the Wireless Handsets Category. The Optimus G was awarded on the basis of its technical specifications, aesthetics, design and how the device compares in these categories to others in the market. Since its introduction in the third quarter of 2012, the Optimus G has received accolades from around the world. The smartphone received a Korea Electronic Show (KES) Innovation Award for its Zerogap Touch technology, which improves the durability and clarity of the display by eliminating air gaps found in other touchscreens. In design, the Optimus G also received the iF Design Product Award in November 2012. PR