Trading at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) resumed after a fire on the fourth floor of the exchange building in Karachi was brought under control on Monday.
According to media reports, four fire brigades swiftly reached the PSX building to extinguish the blaze.
The fourth floor, which houses several brokerage firms, was affected. However, PSX officials have maintained that the situation is under control. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.
The PSX issued a notice stating, “It is hereby informed to all TRE Certificate Holders and concerned parties that trading in all securities was temporarily suspended from 10:25 am to 11:25 am today, due to the fire that broke out in the brokerage firm’s office in the Stock Exchange building. Many firms were unable to access the building due to this incident.”
The suspension of the trading session was extended for one additional hour until 12:30 pm.
A second notice from the PSX stated, “The situation is under control, and brokerage firms’ staff has begun returning to their premises. To ensure a smooth reopening of the market for all concerned, the temporary suspension of trading in all securities has been further extended until 12:25 pm today.”
Trading resumed at 12:30 pm once the situation was completely under control.
A spokesperson for Sindh Rescue 1122 reported that there were no casualties following the fire at the Ali Habib Trading Company building on I.I. Chundrigar Road. He said that the fire started on the fourth floor and that fire brigades had initiated the cooling process upon arriving at the scene.
This incident follows a similar event in 2018 when a fire on the rooftop of the PSX Broker’s building was contained within 40 minutes by the exchange’s firefighting system, without affecting trading and clearing operations.
