Key Points
- Pakistan’s benchmark KSE-100 Index dropped 1.97% on Friday, ending a four-session buying streak, with heavy selling pressures across major sectors.
- Losses in large-weight stocks, including OGDC, PPL and NBP, weighed down the market, while broader global equity weakness added to bearish sentiment.
- The Pakistani rupee posted a marginal gain against the US dollar, and trading volumes on the all-share index climbed as broader participation increased.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s stock market ended sharply lower on Friday, breaking a four-day rally as the benchmark KSE-100 Index closed down by nearly two per cent, driven by heavy selling in key sectors and declining investor confidence.
The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) saw sustained pressure throughout the session, with the KSE-100 Index dipping as low as 183,547.29 in intraday trade before settling at 184,129.58, down 3,702.50 points or 1.97 per cent.
Market analysts said sentiment weakened after a statement from Barrick Mining Corporation about security concerns and ongoing reviews at the Reko Diq copper-gold project dampened risk appetite.
The news hit heavy-weight stocks Oil & Gas Development Company (OGDC) and Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) particularly hard, with OGDC closing about 2.3 per cent lower and PPL sliding 5 per cent, together subtracting roughly 489 points from the benchmark, according to brokerage Topline Securities.
Banking stocks also lagged, with National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) losing value amid investor unease ahead of a court hearing on a pension-related case set for February 13, contributing a further 406 points of downward pressure on the index.
The session was dominated by high trading activity in stocks such as NBP, PPL, K-Electric Ltd (KEL), OGDC, and Bank of Punjab (BOP), Topline said.
The PSX had been closed on Thursday in observance of Kashmir Day. On Wednesday, the KSE-100 had posted gains for a fourth consecutive session, rising by 931 points, before the reversal on Friday.
In corporate developments, K-Electric Chief Executive Officer Moonis Alvi resigned from his position, the utility said in a notice to the exchange, days after a provincial authority annulled an ombudsman’s order seeking his removal over alleged workplace harassment.
In broader markets, global equities extended losses as selling intensified on Wall Street and Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan also declined. Investors weighed concerns over labour markets and potential profit pressures on technology firms, contributing to risk-off trading conditions.
Commodities markets also saw volatility, with gold easing slightly and silver tumbling sharply before recovering part of its losses.
On the currency front, the Pakistani rupee posted a small gain against the US dollar in the inter-bank market, closing at Rs 279.71, a rise of Rs 0.01 against the greenback.
Trading volumes on the all-share index increased to 1,272.64 million shares from 1,195.26 million in the previous session, while the total value of shares traded rose to Rs 60.36 billion from Rs 44.10 billion.
Among individual stocks, K-Electric Ltd led activity with 517.81 million shares traded, followed by National BankXD with 51.24 million shares and F. Nat. Equities with 50.26 million shares. Of the 480 companies traded on Friday, 113 posted gains, 323 recorded losses, and 44 remained unchanged.
