Share prices plunge as selling grips Pakistan Stock Exchange again

Selling pressure stage a comeback at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday amid escalation in the Gulf region, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index losing over 2,500 points during intraday trading, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

A little after midday, the index was hovering at 151,714.64, a decline of 2,577.61 points or minus 1.70%. However, at the close of business, the share prices recovered some of the losses and the index ended the day at 152,740.37 points, up by 1,551.88 or minus 1.02 percent.

The selling came amid a global panic over an escalating energy crisis in the Middle East.

Of the 569 companies traded today, prices of 153 companies went up, 261 were down while 155 remained unchanged.

Selling was observed in key sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, fertiliser, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs, power generation and refinery. Index-heavy stocks, including ARL, HUBCO, MARI, OGDC, POL, PPL, HBL, MCB, MEBL and NBP, traded in the red.

On Wednesday, the stock exchange had witnessed a strong bullish session with the index posting a sharp recovery amid improved investor sentiment, supported by easing international oil prices and renewed value hunting across key sectors.

The KSE-100 Index closed at 154,292.26 points, registering a significant gain of 4,276.09 points or 2.85%.
 

Reporter Kavish Memon