PSX closes 685 points below its intraday peak

KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 index experienced a notable decline on Wednesday, closing nearly 600 points below its intraday peak.

The index, which had reached a high of 77,800.04 points during the trading session, ended the day at 77,114.49 points, down 76.85 points or 0.1 per cent from its previous closing of 77,191.34.

Throughout the trading day, the KSE-100 index fluctuated, hitting an intraday low of 77,086.81 points. The total trading volume amounted to 128,803,602 shares, with a total market value of PKR 7,415,156,894.

Among the 100 index companies, 50 saw gains, 47 experienced losses, and 3 remained unchanged.

Notable losers included YOUW, which dropped 6.97 per cent, SHFA, which fell by 5.22 per cent, and PGLC, down 4.86 per cent. Other significant decliners were PIBTL and BAHL, with losses of 4.46 per cent and 3.10 per cent, respectively.

Conversely, the top gainers were BNWM, which surged by 9.66 per cent, followed by NRL with a 4.86 per cent increase and FHAM, which rose by 4.77 per cent. CEPB and GADT also performed well, gaining 3.56 per cent and 3.27 per cent respectively.

In terms of index-point contributions, the companies that negatively impacted the index included BAHL, which deducted 79.56 points, EFERT with a reduction of 77.99 points, and FFC, which lowered the index by 53.83 points. Other contributors to the decline were UBL and PPL, with reductions of 29.92 and 21.15 points respectively.

On the positive side, the companies that contributed to the index’s gains were POL, adding 71.68 points, HBL with 29.91 points, and ENGRO, which contributed 19.37 points. DAWH and SYS also provided positive contributions of 19.20 and 17.76 points, respectively.

Sector-wise, the KSE-100 Index was negatively impacted by the Fertilizer sector, which decreased by 115.97 points, followed by Commercial Banks with a drop of 97.16 points. The Food & Personal Care Products sector saw a decline of 18.19 points, Miscellaneous dropped by 15.17 points, and Automobile Parts & Accessories fell by 6.91 points.

Conversely, the index received support from the Oil & Gas Exploration Companies sector, which contributed 45.84 points, Technology & Communication with 27.30 points, and Cement, which added 24.77 points. The Refinery sector contributed 20.42 points, and the Investment Banks / Investment Companies / Securities Companies sector added 18.13 points.