PSX ends in red, shedding over 1,100 points

WEB DESK: In a tumultuous trading session, the benchmark KSE-100 index witnessed a significant decline of 1,134 points, closing at 61,020, marking its lowest level in almost two months.

The index, which had initially shown promise with a 0.39 per cent increase earlier in the day, took a sharp turn in the final two hours of trading.

The KSE-100 had been hovering around the 62,000-point mark until 01:30 pm, when a sudden sell-off led to a steep decline, leaving traders and investors puzzled.

Analysts attribute this abrupt downturn to a fresh wave of political uncertainty.

The index exhibited a wide range of fluctuations, moving between an intraday high of 62,394.25 (+240.41) and a low of 60,926.86 (-1,226.99) points.

The total volume of the KSE-100 index reached 154.597 million shares, reflecting the heightened activity in the market.

Of the 100 index companies, 14 managed to close in positive territory, while 78 experienced losses. Three companies remained unchanged, and five were untraded during the session.

The decline in the KSE-100 index was predominantly led by several sectors, including oil and gas exploration companies, commercial banks, fertiliser, cement, and power generation and distribution. These sectors collectively contributed to the index’s downturn, with notable points deducted from each.

Conversely, some sectors, such as Insurance, Property, Transport, Modarabas, and Vanaspati & Allied Industries, cumulatively added 9.13 points, providing a slight offset to the overall negative trend.

Notable companies that dragged the index lower included OGDC, PPL, HUBC, UBL, and ENGRO, each contributing significant negative points.

On the positive side, companies like EFUG, HMB, AGP, RMPL, and MEBL contributed points, albeit to a lesser extent.

In the broader market, the All-Share index closed at 41,163.54, registering a net loss of 713.32 points.

The total market volume increased to 345.126 million shares, accompanied by a decrease in traded value, which was recorded at Rs11.87 billion, reflecting a decrease of Rs2.83 billion from the previous session.

The trading session saw 171,639 trades reported in 341 companies, with 84 companies closing in positive territory, 236 closing down, and 21 remaining unchanged.

Read next: ECC approves 25% sales tax on locally manufactured vehicles