KSE-100 stages partial recovery, but still closes over 3,500 points lower

After plunging over 6,500 points at the opening, the Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 Index recovered a portion of its losses, but still settled with a loss of over 3,500 points on Wednesday.

The index had dropped sharply at the open, shedding more than 6,500 points, hitting an intra-day low of 107,007.68.

At close, the benchmark index settled at 110,009.02, a decrease of 3,559.48 points or 3.13%.

The downward trajectory of the index was largely driven by negative contributions from key stocks such as LUCK, HUBC, UBL, SYS, and ENGROH, which collectively dragged the index down by 967 points, brokerage house Topline Securities said in its post-market report.

“The sharp rebound of over 4,500 points reflects underlying market confidence, driven by strong economic fundamentals and expectations that tensions will de-escalate quickly after the comment by United States Secretary of State,” Waqas Ghani, Head of Research at JS Global, told Business Recorder.

Meanwhile, Mohammed Sohail, CEO of Topline Securities, expressed that after the latest offensive, there will be no major escalation between the two neighbours, “and dust will eventually settle down”.

“Investors seem optimistic about the upcoming International Monetary Fund (IMF) board meeting, which will decide on the loan tranche for Pakistan,” he said.

The heaviest fighting in more than two decades has erupted between the two neighbours, with shelling and gunfire over the frontier in Kashmir and India striking targets inside Pakistan.

At least 26 Pakistanis were martyred and 45 were injured in Indian missile attacks inside Pakistan at 6 location, DG ISPR said.

The ISPR spokesperson said Indian missiles were launched at sites including Bahawalpur, Kotli and Muzaffarabad cities, while it also attacked the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project.

In retaliation, the Pakistan military brought down five Indian Air Force jets, including three Rafale, one MiG-21, and one SU-30, following Indian missile attacks, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told Bloomberg.

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday afternoon that the recent Indian strikes against targets in Pakistan and Pakistani-controlled Kashmir were a “shame.”

The National Security Council (NSC), in a meeting held later in the day, authorised the Pakistan armed forces “to undertake corresponding actions in this regard.”

On Tuesday, the PSX witnessed a negative session as its benchmark KSE-100 closed the day lower by 534 points to settle at 113,568.51, losing the gain of nearly 1,000 points the index had made during intra-day trading.

Globally, US stock futures and Chinese markets rose on Wednesday, as investors cheered news of a meeting between top U.S. and Chinese trade officials as a chance to tone down the tariffs, while China cut interest rates and vowed to support stock markets.

S&P 500 futures rose by about 0.9% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up by 1.7% by mid-morning. China blue chips rose 0.5%.

On Wednesday, China’s central bank governor flagged a 10 basis point cut in its benchmark interest rate and a 50 basis point cut to bank reserve requirements, sending more cash into the banking system.

Simultaneously, the financial regulator announced an expanded scheme to send insurance investment into the stock market and promised more steps to support property markets, which investors took as a signal of authorities acting in concert.

Meanwhile, the Pakistani rupee posted a marginal decline against the US dollar, depreciating 0.04% in the inter-bank market on Wednesday. At close, the local currency settled at 281.47, a loss of Re0.1 against the greenback.

Volume on the all-share index increased to 550.08 million from 420.55 million recorded in the previous close.

The value of shares rose to Rs30.12 billion from Rs23.70 billion in the previous session.

WorldCall Telecom was the volume leader with 53.67 million shares, followed by B.O.Punjab with 35.77 million shares, and Sui South Gas with 26.71 million shares.

Shares of 447 companies were traded on Wednesday, of which 49 registered an increase, 356 recorded a fall, while 42 remained unchanged.