KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) closed in the red on Friday as profit-taking pulled the benchmark KSE-100 Index down by 327.60 points, or 0.28%, to settle at 118,442.17. The index had touched an intraday high of 119,405.91 before selling pressure wiped out early gains.
The session saw the index trade within a range of 1,071 points, recording a low of 118,334.40. Total volume for the KSE-100 stood at 172.21 million shares, while broader market participation remained weak, with total traded value dropping to Rs23.27 billion from Rs38.53bn in the previous session.
Market pressure stemmed from automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, power generation, and refineries. Index-heavy stocks including HUBCO, ARL, MARI, PPL, MCB, MEBL, and NBP closed in negative territory.
The biggest losers included Cnergyico, K-Electric, and PIBTL , while the top gainers were Nishat Mills, Interloop, KTML etc.
In terms of index impact, the biggest drags were FFC and HUBCo followed by Lucky Cement, Mari Petroleum and UBL.
The PSX has been rallying on optimism over an imminent staff-level agreement (SLA) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). On Thursday, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmed expressed confidence in reaching a deal soon, though no specific timeline was provided. Investors are also closely watching government efforts to address circular debt in the energy sector.
On the global front, geopolitical tensions and trade concerns dampened risk appetite. Reports of Israeli airstrikes on Gaza, a Ukrainian drone attack on a Russian military base, and US tariff threats added to investor caution. Major central banks, including the US Federal Reserve, Bank of Japan, and Bank of England, kept rates steady but signaled growing economic uncertainty.
At PSX, overall trading volume on the All-Share Index also declined to 369.12 million shares from 667.88 million in the previous session. The most traded stocks were Cnergyico PK (49.09m shares), Pak Refinery (27.36m), and Fauji Foods Ltd (26.35m). Out of 435 companies, 193 closed positive, 190 declined, and 52 remained unchanged.
