A volatile trading session was observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), with the benchmark KSE-100 Index swinging both ways during trading on Monday.
The index opened on a negative note, with the benchmark index dropping to an intraday low of 147,771.35. However, buying interest returned during the second half of the trading session, pushing the index to an intraday high of 151,875.01.
At 3:30am, the benchmark index was hovering at 151,325.07, up by 926.36 points or 0.62%.
Buying was observed in key sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, fertiliser, oil and gas exploration companies and refineries. Index-heavy stocks, including MARI, OGDC, PPL, PSO, SNGPL, HUBCO, HB, MCB and MEBL traded in the green.
“Market sentiment has soured as a major global deadline looms and the IMF signals a potential end to recent fuel relief,” said Behtari Capital on Monday.
“With the IMF pushing for higher fuel levies and the Trump-Iran ultimatum less than 24 hours away, the market is bracing for impact,” it added.
During the last week, Pakistan’s stock market remained under pressure amid escalating geopolitical tensions and persistently high global oil prices.
The benchmark KSE-100 Index continued to exhibit volatility, declining by 1,309 points or 0.9% on a week-on-week basis to close at 150,398.70 points.
Internationally, oil prices rose, bonds fell, and stocks were mixed at the start of trading in Asia on Monday as US President Donald Trump vowed “hell” if Tehran does not meet his deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump’s repeated threats to destroy civilian infrastructure, including power plants and bridges, if the vital waterway is not open by Tuesday, have put traders on edge for reciprocal attacks by Iran on targets in the Gulf states.
With liquidity thin, as many countries around the region observed holidays on Monday, S&P 500 e-mini futures sank 0.2%, while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.5%.
The Nikkei 225 rose 1.2%, as South Korea’s Kospi advanced 2%.
Brent crude futures opened higher, rising 1.4% to $110.58 a barrel after members of the OPEC+ agreed on Sunday to raise its oil output quotas by 206,000 barrels per day for May.
However, the increase will exist only on paper for several major producing countries behind the Strait of Hormuz that have sustained damage to oil production facilities and transport infrastructure since the war started.
This is an intra-day update
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