KSE-100 loses over 330 points as political uncertainty persists

Ongoing political uncertainty continued to irk sentiment at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), as the benchmark KSE-100 Index ended the first session of the week with a loss of 0.8%, while volumes improved marginally from the previous session.

Marred by political noise, the indices opened in the negative, dropping to the day's low of 40,814.56, down by 486 points. However, the benchmark index posted a minor recovery to settle at 40,970.82, a decline of 330.66 points or a percentage change of 0.80%.

A day after massive selling pressure, KSE-100 gains 0.3%

Across-the board pressure was witnessed in the market as the political situation remained volatile. Index-heavy sectors including, automobiles, chemicals, commercial banks and oil & gas exploration companies ended with losses.

“Ambiguity remains in the market after the Pakistan Tehreek-e- Insaf (PTI) announced to dissolve assemblies. Moreover, statements pertaining to ex-army chief are also charging up the political situation, which is being reflected in the market,” Saad Khan, Head of Research at IGI Securities, told Business Recorder.

Former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Sunday said that he has a “personal” dispute with former army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa (Retd) but he will not take any action against him if he comes into power again.

Meanwhile, the government remained engaged in handling the political situation, while talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) continued.

“Until clarity is achieved on the political front, and uncertainty pertaining to the IMF programme is resolved, the situation would remain volatile,” said Khan.

The market expert said that the latest current account deficit figures was a positive development.

“However, the market is more concerned with the political situation at the moment."

On the economic front, Pakistan’s current account deficit (CAD) shrank by more than 50% during the first five months of this fiscal year (FY23) due to a lower import bill and a marginal increase in exports. The deficit during November alone was recorded at $0.28 billion.

Moreover, rupee ended up unchanged against the US dollar on Monday, to close at 224.94 in the inter-bank market.

Capital Stake said indices traded in red for most part of the day, while volumes surged from the last close. Equity markets around the globe showed a negative trend.

Meanwhile, sectors driving the benchmark KSE-100 index downwards included power generation and distribution (53.51 points), fertiliser (51.53 points) and technology and communication (48.08 points).

Volume on the all-share index increased to 142.6 million from 139.7 million on Friday. However, the value of shares traded decreased to Rs3.81 billion from Rs4.17 billion recorded in the previous session.

Bank Alfalah Limited was the volume leader with 29.02 million shares, followed by WorldCall Telecom with 12.44 million shares, and Hascol Petroleum Limited with 9.45 million shares.

Shares of 317 companies were traded on Monday, of which 82 registered an increase, 220 recorded a fall, and 15 remained unchanged.