PSX loses 907 points on institutional selling

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) extended its losing streak for the third consecutive session on Wednesday and lost over 900 point as investors were worried about chances of no reduction in policy rate in the next meeting and the ongoing International Monetary Fund (IMF) review under the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility.

Though trading began on a positive note, driving the index to the intra-day high of 166,947, the momentum could not be maintained as selling pressure set in, pulling the market down to the day's low of 165,110 before close.

At the end of the day, the benchmark KSE-100 index registered a fall of 907 points, or 0.55%, and settled at 165,266.75.

KTrade Securities' equity trader Ahmed Sheraz commented that the PSX closed another turbulent session in negative territory, which was the third consecutive day in the red, as the KSE-100 index fell 907 points (-0.55%).

The decline was primarily driven by investor concerns following the State Bank of Pakistan's indication that the policy rate cut was unlikely in the upcoming monetary policy committee meeting. It was compounded by heightened scrutiny from the IMF as part of the ongoing review, he said. Heavyweight stocks including UBL, Fauji Fertiliser, Lucky Cement and Mari Energies were among the major drags on the index. On the other side, tech firm Systems Limited emerged as a notable gainer, offering some respite, followed by Bank Alfalah.

Looking ahead, market direction is expected to remain closely tied to geopolitical developments and the outcome of IMF review — both of which could play a critical role in shaping investor sentiment, Sheraz added.

Arif Habib Limited (AHL) stated that the market's failure to regain the 167.2k level created a new range of interest from 163.8k to 164.2k. During the day, 33 shares rose and 67 fell, where Systems Ltd (+6.11%), Bank Alfalah (+4.04%) and MCB Bank (+1.27%) contributed the most to index gains. On the flip side, UBL (-3.3%), Fauji Fertiliser (-1.48%) and Lucky Cement (-2.67%) were the major drags.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported that Pakistan's gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 3.04% in FY25 and the government projected an expansion of 4.2% in FY26.

On KSE-100, "167k is now the resistance level until the market shows a bullish flow on short time frames," AHL remarked. Topline Securities, in its review, mentioned that the stock market remained under pressure as bearish sentiment prevailed throughout the session.

The KSE-100 index kicked off on a strong note, surging 773 points in early trade. However, the upward momentum quickly dissipated as institutional profit-taking gained pace. As a result, the index dropped sharply, hitting the intra-day low of 1,063 points, and eventually closed at 165,267, down 907 points, or 0.55%, it said.

The downturn was mainly driven by aggressive selling from local institutions and insurance companies, as suggested by National Clearing Company data from the previous session. The profit-taking erased earlier gains and pulled the market into negative zone, Topline added.

Overall trading volumes inched up to 1.275 billion shares compared to Tuesday's tally of 1.266 billion. The value of shares traded stood at Rs61.1 billion.

Shares of 484 companies were traded. Of these, 148 stocks closed higher, 297 declined and 39 remained unchanged.

PTCL continued to lead the volumes chart with trading in 114.3 million shares, gaining Rs2.23 to close at Rs33.37. It was followed by The Bank of Punjab with 88 million shares, losing Rs1.45 to close at Rs33.63 and K-Electric with 87.5 million shares, rising Rs0.25 to close at Rs7.23. Foreign investors sold shares worth Rs322 million, the National Clearing Company reported.