PSX slumps as KSE-100 sheds 3,790 points

KARACHI: The benchmark KSE-100 Index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) declined sharply, losing over 3,700 points on Wednesday, ARY News reported.

KSE-100 shed 3,790.40 points, or 3.3 percent to settle at 111,070.29 at the closing of the stock market as against 114,860.69 points the previous trading day.

A total of 1.11 billion shares were traded during the day at the PSX, as compared with 1.25 billion shares the previous trading day.

The price of shares stood at Rs60.24 billion as compared with Rs62.72 billion on the last trading day at the Pakistan Stock Exchange.

Analysts at Topline Securities said that the KSE-100 witnessed a substantial decline as local mutual funds, having been net buyers for the past 14 consecutive trading sessions, shifted to net sellers yesterday.

“Market sentiment suggests that they continued this selling trend today as well. The primary drivers of the downward movement were MARI, FFC, HUBC, PPL, and MEBL, which collectively accounted for an alarming 1,731 points of the index’s overall decline,” they added.

As many as 472 scrips were active in the stock market, out of which, 89 recorded gains and 349 sustained losses while the share price of 34 companies remained unchanged.

WorldCall Telecom remained the top-trading company with 139.29 million shares at Rs1.71 per share, followed by Cnergyico PK with 67.46 million shares at Rs6.54 per share.

Bank of Punjab remained the third with 60.16 million shares to settle at Rs10.17 per share at the closing of the PSX.

Al-Ghazi Tractors Limited was the top gainer with an increase of Rs51.29 per share price to close at Rs564.23, followed by Indus Motor Company Limited with an Rs43.66 rise in its per share price to Rs2,058.57.

Unilever Pakistan Foods Limited recorded a decline of Rs107.16 per share closing at Rs20,892.86, followed by Rafhan Maize Products Company Limited with Rs98.02 decline to close at Rs.8,902.