ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 Index ended slightly lower on Thursday following a session of range-bound trading, as investors remained cautious amid rollover week.
At the close of trading, the index settled at 147,343.50, down by 150.53 points or 0.10%.
A total of 935,466,958 shares were traded during the day as compared to 856,664,471 shares on the last working day, whereas the price of shares stood at PKR 33.515 billion against PKR 29.286 billion on the last trading day.
As many as 474 companies transacted their shares in the stock market, 238 of them recorded gains and 201 met losses, whereas the share price of 35 companies remained unchanged.
The three top trading companies were Pace (Pak) Limited with 71,482,279 shares at PKR 8.06 per share, followed by Bank Makramah with 66,004,498 shares at PKR 5.81 per share, whereas Pak Elektron settled with 51,186,186 shares at PKR 46.83 per share.
Unilever Pakistan Foods Limited witnessed a maximum increase of PKR 757.14 per share price, closing at PKR 33,077.14, whereas Sazgar Engineering Works Limited was the runner-up with PKR 149.52 rise in its per share price to PKR 1,644.75.
PIA Holding Company LimitedB witnessed a maximum decline of PKR 377.99 per share, closing at PKR 26,622.01, followed by Sapphire Textile Mills Limited with a drop of PKR 61.37 in its share price to close at PKR 1,370.00.
On Wednesday, PSX extended its losing streak for a third consecutive session, as investors grappled with rollover pressures, a weak economic outlook, and a national flood alert. The benchmark KSE-100 Index tumbled 941.03 points, or 0.63%, to close at 147,494.03.
Global trend
Asian markets were mixed on Thursday as strong earnings from AI giant Nvidia were tempered by concerns over the company’s business prospects in China. Meanwhile, the US dollar remained under pressure amid growing expectations of an imminent interest rate cut.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fluctuated between gains and losses, last down 0.2%, as US equity futures slipped following an after-hours decline in Nvidia shares. The chipmaker, now the world’s most valuable company, saw its stock dip despite posting impressive results.
After two consecutive days of gains that pushed US markets to record highs, S&P 500 e-mini futures dropped 0.2%, while Nasdaq futures fell 0.4%, reflecting investor unease over Nvidia’s exposure to China amid ongoing trade tensions between Washington and Beijing.
Japanese stocks also fluctuated after Kyodo News reported that Japan’s chief trade negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, had cancelled a scheduled visit to the United States. He was expected to finalise terms of a trade deal reached last month. Despite the uncertainty, the Nikkei 225 was last up 0.4%.
In South Korea, stocks rose 0.3% after the Bank of Korea held its benchmark interest rate steady at 2.5%, in line with economists’ expectations.
