The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 Index experienced a significant drop on Wednesday, closing at 114,148.45 points, down 1,904.23 points or 1.64%. The dramatic fall came after profit-taking erased nearly 1,700 points gained during intra-day trading.
The index traded in a range of 3,903.19 points, peaking at 117,750.22 (+1,697.54) and plunging to a low of 113,847.03 (-2,205.65). Total trading volume for the KSE-100 Index stood at 254.28 million shares.
The All-Share Index closed at 70,743.18, shedding 1,018.41 points (-1.42%). Market-wide volume surged to 1.1 billion shares, compared to 792.77 million in the previous session.
The decline was led by key sectors such as commercial Banks (-556.99 points), oil & gas exploration (-405.68 points), and cement (-195.29 points). The top gainers stood out to be JDWS (+10.00%), MEHT (+7.39%) and SCBPL (+4.23%) while the top losers were PSX (-9.16%), PKGS (-6.26%), and SEARL (-5.72%).
The day’s sharp drop was driven by strong selling pressure in the latter half of the session. Despite the initial buying interest in sectors such as cement, banks, and energy, investor caution took hold, leading to heavy profit-taking.
Market analysts remain cautiously optimistic, citing eased top-down risks. “While today’s dip reflects profit-booking, the broader outlook remains positive,” noted Intermarket Securities in its post-session analysis.
While the KSE-100 Index has gained 35,703 points (+45.51%) during the fiscal year, it has lost 978 points (-0.85%) so far in the calendar year. Investors will likely monitor economic data and global cues as they navigate the volatile trading environment.
