Cement sector helps index add 204 points.

KARACHI -- Regardless of the slight nervousness on political developments leading to the start of JUI (F) Azadi march towards Islamabad and the precarious health of the former PM, the stock market remained unruffled on Monday as the KSE-100 index climbed to intraday high by 351 points after a slight dip of 85 points in early trade. It finally settled with gain of 204.13 points (0.61 per cent) at 33,861.59.

Buying came from individuals amounting to $1.86 million and brokers proprietary trading of $0.65m. ForeiAgners, banks and mutual funds all thought it prudent to stay on the sidelines and watch the show. The shining stars for the day were the cyclicals, cement and steel.

Cement performed well due to the news of deferment of axle load policy for a year by the government, resulting in most cement scrips hitting their upper circuits. DG Khan, Maple Leaf, Kohat, Cherat and Pioneer all closed at their upper limit.

The market ignored the recently announced poorer than expected results by some of the cement companies.

The sector added 72 points to index gains. Among steels, Amreli, Mughal...