KARACHI: The bears made a return on Wednesday at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), as the benchmark KSE-100 index took another beating and lost almost 300 points.
Investor confidence was shaken by inflation fears resulting from the loss of subsidies. The market’s fall was worsened by widespread concern about political events.
All index-heavy sectors lost significant ground and ended the day with minor losses.
Earlier in the day, trading started on a sour note, and the market stayed in a decline until the finish.
The benchmark KSE-100 index fell 322.10 points, or 0.75 percent, to conclude at 42,756.04 points at the closing.
According to a study by Arif Habib Limited, the market remained under pressure as investors remained unmoved by the prospect of a negative budget statement.
“The benchmark KSE-100 index fell to 354 points as selling pressure was seen across the board owing to fears about rising inflation, which kept investors at bay,” according to the brokerage firm.
The mainboard remained quiet, while third-tier stocks saw significant action.
Power (-67.8 points), banks (-65.7 points), cement (-55.2 points), technology (-41.1 points), and exploration and production (-41.1 points) all contributed to the poor performance (-32.4 points).
During the session, 334 businesses’ shares were exchanged. 98 scrips finished in the green, 207 in the red, and 29 stayed unchanged at the end of the trade.
Overall trading volume increased to 194.39 million shares, up from 285.34 million on Tuesday. During the day, Rs5.34 billion worth of shares was exchanged.
With 24.62 million shares traded, Silk Bank was the most active, dropping Rs0.01 to settle at Rs1.49. Unity Foods, with 14.09 million shares traded, lost Rs0.47 to end at Rs22.30, and Ghani Global Holdings, with 13.49 million shares traded, lost Rs0.27 to settle at Rs16.90, were the next two stocks to trade.
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