ISLAMABAD: After hitting a record high in the previous session, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday closed flat amid a wave of profit-taking.
The benchmark index opened near the 169,000 level and gained early momentum, reaching an intra-day high of 170,697.74. However, it eased slightly in the latter part of the session amid mild profit-taking.
At the close, the KSE-100 settled at 169,451.86, a marginal decline of 4.52 points.
Positive contributions came from MLCF, LUCK, ISL, FCCL, and PIOC, which collectively shaved off 498 points from the index.
These gains were partially offset by declines in FFC, SRVI, and PPL, which together subtracted 380 points, according to Topline Securities’ post-market report.
“The day began on a strong note as the KSE-100 extended its bullish momentum and briefly crossed the 170k mark,” noted Ali Najib, Deputy Head of Trading at Arif Habib Ltd.
“However, investors opted to book gains at higher levels, pushing the index into negative territory by the close.”
In a significant economic development, the US Export-Import Bank approved $1.25 billion in financing to support the mining of critical minerals at Reko Diq in Pakistan.
On Tuesday, the PSX had extended its bullish momentum, with the index rallying as investors built fresh positions across major sectors and overall market activity surged. The KSE-100 had advanced 1,153.14 points (0.69%) to close at 169,456.39.
It may be recalled that the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Executive Board on Monday approved a $1.29 billion loan disbursement for Pakistan after reviewing the staff-level agreement reached in October under the country’s ongoing reform programme.
The decision follows a staff-level agreement reached in October between Pakistan and the IMF on the South Asian country’s ongoing loan programmes.
The approval includes nearly $1 billion under the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme and an additional $200 million under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).
