MSCI Adds 22 PSX Companies to Its Indices

Investment research firm and stock markets index provider Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) has added 22 Pakistani-listed companies to its indices. MSCI released an update on its Quarterly Index Review, notifying of 3 additions for Pakistan to the MSCI Main Frontier Market Index. All changes will be implemented as of the close of February 29, 2024. The new additions to the MSCI Main Frontier Market include Bank AL Habib (BAHL), Interloop (ILP), and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines (SNGP). The main Frontier Market Index now comprises 20 constituents, including OGDC, MARI, PPL, LUCK, MCB, UBL, ENGRO, HBL, POL, SYS, FFC, HUBC, EFERT, MTL, BAFL, PSO, TRG, BAHL, ILP and SNGP. In the MSCI Pakistan Frontier Market Small Cap index, 19 new constituents have been added, and 4 constituents have been removed. The additions to the small-cap index include AICL, AGL, ASL, AKBL, CEPB, FEROZ, GHNI, GHGL, HASCOL, IGIHL, JSBL, MUREB, NCL, PCAL, PSX, SGFL, SSGC, TREET, and WTL, while BIPL, FCCL, PSMC, and SNGP have been removed. The total number of constituents in the MSCI Pakistan Frontier Market Small Cap index is 56. Topline Securities anticipates that Pakistan’s weight in the Index is expected to be around 3 percent after this review. Due to this adjustment, we anticipate some net flows, although the quantum will not be significant. To highlight, Pakistan was reclassified to MSCI Frontier Market from Emerging Market in November 2021 as it did not meet the standards for Size and Liquidity.