PSX slips into red despite opening above 120,000 mark

KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) began the week on a positive note as the benchmark KSE-100 index opened with strong gains during early morning trade on Monday.

Trading kicked off around 9:30 AM, with the KSE-100 index rising by 515.19 points to reach 120,164.33 when the volume stood at just 578,822 shares. The bullish trend continued briefly, with the index climbing further by 636.4 points to hit 120,285.54 by 9:33 AM.

However, the momentum soon waned as the index pared some of its early gains, slipping to 119,683.08—still in the green but showing a marginal increase of just 33.94 points or 0.03 per cent.

As of the latest update at 10:00 AM, the KSE-100 had regained some ground, posting a gain of 370.14 points to stand at 120,019.

In terms of long-term performance, the KSE-100 index is currently up by 59 per cent on a year-on-year basis. The year-to-date (YTD) increase stands at 4.06 per cent. Over the past 52 weeks, the index has fluctuated between a low of 71,781.96 and a high of 120,796.67.

Among the top gainers in percentage terms during the morning session were Baluchistan Glass Limited (BGL), which rose by 11.17 per cent or Rs1 to Rs9.95; AN Textile Mills Limited (ANTM), up by 10.03 per cent or Rs1.31 to Rs14.37; and Service Industries Textiles Limited (SERT), which gained 10.02 per cent or Rs1.53 to Rs16.80.

On the other hand, notable losers included Pakistan PVC Limited (PPVC), down by 11.79 per cent or Rs0.99 to Rs7.41; Sanghar Sugar Mills Limited (SANSM), which dropped 9.98 per cent or Rs5.89 to Rs53.16; and Emco Industries Limited (EMCO), down by 8.96 per cent or Rs3.74 to Rs38.01.

PSX trims early gains, slips into red

By 11:43 AM, the PSX reversed its early gains, with the benchmark KSE-100 index falling into negative territory. The index declined by 0.29 per cent, or 342.94 points, to stand at 119,306.

Previous session recap

On Friday, May 16, the PSX closed in negative territory. The benchmark KSE-100 index ended the session at 119,649.14, down by 312.77 points or 0.26 per cent.

During the session, the index traded within a wide range of 965.02 points, hitting an intraday high of 120,506.17 (up by 544.26 points) and a low of 119,541.15 (down by 420.76 points). The total volume for the KSE-100 index stood at 235.07 million shares.

Meanwhile, the broader All-Share Index settled at 74,209.25 with a net loss of 31.27 points or 0.04 per cent.

This is an intraday market update. Last update at 11:50 AM.

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