PSX falls 133 points in choppy trading
Trading remained choppy on Wednesday at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) as the market struggled to find clear direction amid a mix of positive economic developments and sector-specific concerns.
The benchmark KSE-100 index ended slightly in the red, reflecting investor caution and a consolidation phase following the recent upside. The index oscillated between the intra-day high of 171,393 and low of 169,230, before closing at 170,314, down 133 points, or 0.08%.
On the external front, Pakistan's current account recorded a surplus of $100 million in November 2025, a notable improvement compared to a deficit of $291 million in October. Adding to the optimism, IT exports surged 14% year-on-year (YoY) to $356 million in November, reinforcing confidence in the sector's growth and its role as a key forex earner. However, gains were capped by weakness in the energy space. Power generation remained flat YoY at 8.05k gigawatt hours in November and dropped sharply from 9.9k GWh in October.
KTrade Securities commented that the PSX witnessed another range-bound session as profit-taking and apparent mutual fund redemptions weighed on select sectors, particularly cement and energy. The KSE-100 index edged down by 133 points to close at 170,314.
It said that banks provided the sole meaningful support for the market throughout the session, contributing approximately 800 points to the index. Buying interest was led by United Bank, National Bank, Habib Bank and Askari Bank alongside strength in Pioneer Cement, The Searle Company and The Bank of Punjab. The broader market outlook remains constructive, underpinned by the State Bank's policy rate cut, partial progress on settling the circular debt and renewed US investment commitments to the Reko Diq project, KTrade predicted.
Arif Habib Limited (AHL) Deputy Head of Research Ali Najib remarked that the PSX experienced consolidation as the KSE-100 index moved in both directions before closing on an almost flat note at 170,314, down 133 points. During the session, the benchmark recorded an intra-day high of 171,393 (+945 points) and low of 169,230 (-1,217 points), reflecting heightened volatility.
On the macro front, he said, Pakistan posted a current account surplus of $100 million in November, significantly lower than the surplus of $709 million in the same month of last year. Cumulatively, the Jul-Nov period showed a current account deficit of $812 million compared to a surplus of $503 million last year.
Additionally, net foreign direct investment (FDI) stood at $180 million in November, broadly in line with October levels, Najib added.
JS Global analyst Mubashir Anis Naviwala stated that the PSX opened with a strong gap-up, reflecting bullish sentiment. The KSE-100 quickly extended gains and touched a historic all-time high of 171,393 in early trading. Initially, the momentum remained strong but high valuations invited some profit-taking later. He pointed out that despite the pullback, the index stayed comfortably above 170k.
Overall trading volumes decreased to 1.07 billion shares versus Tuesday's tally of 1.18 billion. The value of traded shares stood at Rs51.8 billion.
Shares of 483 companies were traded. Of these, 178 closed higher, 255 fell and 50 remained unchanged.
The Bank of Punjab was the volume leader with trading in 90.6 million shares, rising Rs0.75 to close at Rs37.86. It was followed by Hascol Petroleum with 84 million shares, gaining Rs1.41 to close at Rs15.63 and TPL Corp with 53.2 million shares, higher by Rs0.27 to close at Rs12.02. Foreign investors sold shares worth Rs207.3 million.