PSX sheds early gains on Moody’s alert over India-Pakistan escalation

KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) was highly volatile today, hitting an intraday high and low of 115,093.10 and 113,418.52 points respectively. The market was down by 533 points or (0.47%) closing at 113,568 level. 

Market opened on a buoyant note on Tuesday, as investor sentiment was lifted by a much-anticipated 100 bps policy rate cut by the State Bank. Riding this wave of optimism, the benchmark Index surged to an intraday high of 900 points. 

“However, the strong wave of selling washed away all the gains and dragged the market towards the negative lane. According to Moody’s, the tension between Pakistan and India is comparatively hurting the economic image of Pakistan more than that of India besides higher military spendings,” Al Habib Capital research stated.

On Monday, Global rating agency Moody’s said that escalating tensions between India and Pakistan would weigh on Pakistan’s economic growth.

“The reversal in market trajectory was primarily driven by renewed geopolitical tensions between Pakistan and India, which unsettled investors and overshadowed the central bank’s dovish stance,” Topline Securities research said.

“With most known factors seemingly priced in, investors remained cautious ahead of the upcoming budget, which could potentially sway sentiment either way,” noted Ismail Iqbal Securities research.

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Key heavyweight stocks that provided upward support included PPL, OGDC, PSO, UBL, and SYS, which cumulatively contributed +275 points to the index. On the other hand, notable laggards such as LUCK, HMB, HUBC, EFERT, and BAHL collectively shaved -427 points, weighing heavily on overall performance.

Traded volume stood at 419 million shares, with a total traded value of PKR 23.68 billion. SSGC emerged as the volume leader, with 54 million shares changing hands.