Stocks lose 116 points on profit-taking.

KARACHI -- Stocks drifAted lower on the last trading day of the week in the absence of triggers that could carry the market forward. The benchmark index was down by 116.42 points, or 0.25 per cent, to close at 45,868.04 on Friday.

Profit-taking took hold at the start of the second session which was so intense that the index drifted deep into the red. The index stabilised in the last half hour after a range-bound movement between intraday high and low by 132 and 294 points.

The State Bank of PakisAtan unveiled the Monetary Policy Statement in the evening, keeping the policy rate unchanged at 7pc, which was in line with consensus forecast.

Profit-taking brought down the E and P sector by 51 points; fertiliser 21 points; oil 51 points; technology 19 points; oil and gas marketing companies 16 points and power sector 13 points.

Stocks that contributed positively to the index incluAded Systems (21 points), KTML (15 points), FABL (13 points), FFBL (12 points) and INIL (11 points). Stocks that contributed negatively included TRG (40 points), Engro (16 points), MARI (16 points), PPL (14 points) and OGDC (14 points).

Analyst Ahsan Mehanti observed that the stocks...