Negative sentiments prevailed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) as the ongoing conflict in the Gulf region continued to escalate, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index ending the week down by 2.3% on Friday.
The market opened on a relatively positive note, briefly climbing to an intraday high of 161,435.83, but selling pressure quickly appeared, reversing early gains and driving the index into negative territory.
The benchmark index dropped below the 160,000 level early in the trading day and continued to trend lower through the morning, dragging the index to an intraday low of 157,072.64.
At close, the KSE-100 settled at 157,496.10, down by 3,714.57 points or 2.30%.
“KSE 100 Index witnessed a negative session as sceptical investors came in to sell before the weekend, as fear grows that the US-Iran conflict may turn into a prolonged war,” said Topline Securities, in its post-market note.
The top negative contribution to the KSE-100 Index came from UBL, ENGROH, FFC, LUCK, HUBC, MEBL, SYS, OGDC and BAFL, as they cumulatively contributed 2,124 points drop to the index, added Topline.
On Thursday, PSX witnessed one of its most powerful rallies in recent sessions, as the benchmark KSE-100 Index surged by more than 5,400 points in a sweeping show. The benchmark KSE-100 Index closed at 161,210.68 points, registering a sharp gain of 5,433.46 points or 3.49%.
Globally, Asian stocks fell on Friday and were headed for their sharpest weekly drop in six years, while oil prices were poised for their biggest jump in three years in a turbulent week for global markets as the conflict in the Middle East showed few signs of easing.
Investors sought the safety of cash as they sobered up to the fact that the US-Israel war on Iran could drag on longer than initially anticipated.
They also moved to price in more hawkish rate expectations from major central banks, spooked by the prospect of a resurgence in inflation if the spike in energy prices persists.
Yields on US Treasuries have shot up some 18 basis points this week, their most in nearly a year, while the dollar was set for its largest weekly gain in 16 months.
The war has thus far had the biggest impact on oil prices, with Brent crude futures now trading around $83 per barrel, having been as low as $69 just about a week ago.
US crude shot up to a 20-month high earlier this week.
Both are set to clock a rise of more than 15% for the week, their largest since February 2022.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan last traded 0.4% lower and was set to fall 6.6% for the week, which would mark its steepest weekly drop since March 2020.
Japan’s Nikkei was down 0.5% and on track for a 6.5% weekly loss, while South Korea’s Kospi was also headed for its largest weekly fall in six years with a 10.5% slide.
The market rout this week sent even high-flying technology stocks and indexes such as the Kospi tumbling, as investors scrambled to book profits to cover losses elsewhere.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani rupee registered a marginal gain against the US dollar in the inter-bank market on Friday. At close, the local currency settled at 279.40, a gain of Re0.01 against the greenback.
Volume on the all-share index declined to 363.14 million from 723.88 million recorded in the previous close.
The value of shares decreased to Rs23.11 billion from Rs35.18 billion in the previous session.
K-Electric Ltd. was the volume leader with 36.92 million shares, followed by Cnergyico PK with 22.42 million shares, and Unity Foods Ltd with 19.05 million shares.
Shares of 468 companies were traded on Friday, of which 105 registered an increase, 311 recorded a fall, and 52 remained unchanged.
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