KARACHI:
The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) traded lower at the Friday noon break, with the benchmark KSE-100 index falling 668.83 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 168,196.21. The index had earlier dropped as far as 166,141.
Trading was paused under the exchange’s regular Friday schedule, which divides the session around Jummah prayers. The market is scheduled to reopen at 2:32pm and continue until 4:30pm.
The index came under pressure after Thursday’s sharp 3,078-point, 1.79 per cent decline to 168,865.04. Investors sold off stocks amid rising global oil prices and renewed US-Iran tensions, pushing the market below the key 170,000 level.
On Friday morning, the KSE-100 initially extended its losses, falling more than 2,700 points from the previous close before bargain buying helped lift it toward 168,200. The session peaked at 168,240.89. By the midday recess, approximately 137.7 million shares had traded, worth Rs9.77 billion.
Other major indices also moved lower. The KSE All-Share index fell 382 points, or 0.37 per cent, to 101,912.80, while the KSE-30 lost 161 points and the KMI-30 Islamic index declined by 509 points. Oil and gas stocks offered some support, with the OGTI gaining 0.45 per cent.
Investors remain focused on geopolitical uncertainty and the inflationary effects of higher crude prices following Thursday’s rout, which erased hundreds of billions of rupees in market value. Analysts said the afternoon session would reveal whether the midday recovery holds or selling pressure returns after trading resumes.
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