PSX turns volatile as index slides over 1,700 points near close

KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a highly volatile session on Wednesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index swinging between sharp gains and steep losses before sliding deep into the red as the market neared close.

After opening on a positive note, the benchmark index climbed 506.75 points to reach 160,607.77 around 9:30 AM. However, early optimism faded quickly as selling pressure took over, dragging the index down by 695.02 points to 159,406 within 20 minutes of trading.

The market briefly regained strength mid-morning, hitting the day’s high of 160,690.12 points around 10:54 AM, but renewed selling in the afternoon erased earlier gains. By 2:50 PM, the index had dropped by 1,157.02 points to 158,944.

As of 3:19 PM, the KSE-100 Index was down 1,763.02 points, or 1.10 percent, to 158,338 with trading volumes at 358.7 million shares. Despite the day’s sharp pullback, the PSX remained up 74.26 percent year-on-year and 37.53 percent on a year-to-date basis.

Today’s trading range fluctuated between 158,306.84 and 160,690.12 points. In 52-week terms, the index has moved between 88,852.68 and 169,988.62 points.

Market movers

Among the most actively traded stocks, K-Electric Ltd (KEL) rose 3.61 percent to Rs5.46, while Hascol Petroleum Ltd gained 1.90 percent to Rs15.58. In contrast, PAEL slumped 6.67 percent to Rs47.99 and FCSC plunged 11.11 percent to Rs8.00.

Top advancers

Leading gainers included BFMOD and CWSM, both up 10.02 percent, followed by SARC, SSOM, and ASHT, each advancing around 10 percent.

Top decliners

On the losing side, FCSC fell 11.11 percent, while TCORPCPS, GGGL, and CHBL each shed around 10 percent amid broad-based profit-taking.

The market’s sharp intraday swings reflected continued investor caution as traders weighed profit-taking pressures against optimism over the broader one-year performance of the bourse.