The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 closed lower by 490 points on Wednesday after selling in the second half erased the intra-day gains of nearly 600 points.
The KSE-100 started the session positive, hitting an intra-day high of 113,327.12, followed by selling pressure in the latter hours, which pushed the index to an intra-day low of 112,146.10.
At close, the benchmark index settled at 112,253.76, down by 490.04 points or 0.43%.
“Investor sentiment remained mixed due to the ongoing Ramadan period,” brokerage house Topline Securities said in its post-market report.
The upward movement was mainly driven by ENGROH, TGL, LUCK, PIBTL, and NESTLE, which together contributed 155 points to the index. On the other hand, EFERT, FFC, and PSO combined to reduce the index by 181 points, according to the report.
Pakistan is “likely to pass” the ongoing first review of its $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Bloomberg reported citing officials and diplomats familiar with the matter.
The report said that the country made enough progress to raise revenue.
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb told Reuters on Tuesday that Pakistan was “well positioned” for the first review of its $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout programme.
Islamabad secured the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility last summer to help claw its way out of an economic crisis, with an immediate disbursement of about $1 billion.
The review, if cleared and approved by the lender’s board, could unlock another tranche of funding for cash-strapped Pakistan ahead of its annual budget which is usually presented in June.
On Tuesday, positive momentum returned to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), with the benchmark KSE-100 Index settling with a gain of over 750 points at 112,743.79.
Globally, Australian stocks were down 0.9%, while Japan’s Nikkei edged 0.2% lower, flipping from small early gains. Futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng pointed 0.6% higher.
Overnight, the US S&P 500 slid 1.2%, but futures rose 0.6% on Wednesday. MSCI’s world equity index edged up 0.1%, but remained 1.9% lower for the week.
US President Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, along with doubled duties of 20% on Chinese goods, took effect on Tuesday.
China and Canada retaliated while Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum vowed to respond likewise, without giving details.
Investors are monitoring Trump’s address with Congress to see if there are any cues in future tariff actions.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani rupee recorded marginal decline against the US dollar, depreciating 0.04% in the inter-bank market on Wednesday. At close, the rupee settled at 279.87, a loss of Re0.10 against the greenback.
Volume on the all-share index increased to 263.96 million from 206.85 million recorded in the previous close.
The value of shares rose to Rs13.73 billion from Rs11.34 billion in the previous session.
Pak Int.Bulk was the volume leader with 53.57 million shares, followed by WorldCall Telecom with 23.57 million shares, and Power Cement with 10.98 million shares.
Shares of 431 companies were traded on Wednesday, of which 165 registered an increase, 197 recorded a fall, while 69 remained unchanged.
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