KARACHI: Renewed exchanges of attacks between Iran and Israel and fading hopes for a near-term diplomatic breakthrough kept investors on the defensive Monday, dragging Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) lower for another session as geopolitical uncertainty overshadowed otherwise healthy market participation.
The benchmark KSE-100 Index slipped below the key 170,000-point psychological threshold for the first time since May 22, 2026 and ended at 168,953.71 points as compared to 170.478.94 of previous session. The index remained under pressure throughout the day, touching an intraday high of 169,360.55 points and a low of 168,432.46 points.
BRIndex100 closed at 18,649.41 points, down 200.84 points or 1.07 percent from the previous session, with total traded volume recorded at 455.05 million shares. BRIndex30 declined by 1,019.17 points or 1.48 percent to settle at 67,885.53 points, while turnover stood at 283.02 million shares.
Ali Najib, Deputy Head of Trading at Arif Habib noted that this marked the 15th negative Monday out of the last 17, underscoring the persistent impact of geopolitical developments emerging over weekends on investor sentiment since early February.
Najib said market sentiment remained subdued as renewed hostilities between Iran and Israel diminished expectations of a peace agreement in the near future, prompting investors to trim exposure to equities and adopt a more risk-averse approach.
He added that heavyweight stocks including United Bank Limited (UBL), Engro Holdings (ENGROH), Fauji Fertilizer Company (FFC), Habib Bank Limited (HBL), Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), Hub Power Company (HUBC), Lucky Cement (LUCK), Meezan Bank (MEBL), National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), and Pakistan Telecommunication Company (PTC) emerged as the major laggards and collectively dragged the benchmark index down by 882 points.
Despite the negative tone, the market continued to witness active participation. The traded volume remained 657 million shares although lower than the previous session’s traded shares of 727 million while turnover reached to Rs22.5 billion.
Market capitalization also witnessed a notable erosion as investor selling pressure reduced overall equity valuations. The total market capitalization of the regular market decline to Rs.18.749 trillion from Rs. 18.928 trillion recorded in the previous session.
TPL Properties led the overall volume chart with more than 60.5 million shares changing hands during the session. TPL Corp Ltd. followed with 43.79 million shares and closed at Rs.13.02. Pace (Pak) Ltd. also saw the turnover of 26.33 million shares and ended the day at Rs. 11.53.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Services Limited share price saw a mjor increase of Rs.80.94 during the session and reached at Rs.939.54 while PIA Holding Company LimitedB saw a major decline of Rs.500 per share price and reached at Rs.17,500.
The market breadth remained firmly negative as 336 companies saw their share declining while only 116 ended in positive and 42 remained unchanged out of 494 companies.
The BR Automobile Assembler Index fell 414.26 points or 1.51 percent to close at 27,060.39 points on turnover of 6.60 million shares. The BR Cement Index lost 165.79 points or 1.39 percent to finish at 11,741.78 points with trading volume of 49.02 million shares.
The BR Commercial Banks Index declined 581.73 points or 1.02 percent to close at 56,354.56 points as 21.34 million shares changed hands. The BR Power Generation and Distribution Index shed 322.68 points or 1.17 percent to settle at 27,349.87 points with turnover of 24.85 million shares.
Similarly, the BR Oil and Gas Index retreated 125.13 points or 0.84 percent to close at 14,806.28 points on volume of 40.39 million shares. The BR Tech and Communication Index lost 49.96 points or 1.28 percent to finish at 3,853.61 points with turnover reaching 100.87 million shares.
Looking ahead, Ali Najib said tensions between Iran and Israel are likely to remain the key determinant of market sentiment in the near term. He noted that until meaningful signs of de-escalation emerge, investors are expected to maintain a cautious stance, keeping volatility elevated and limiting the market’s ability to sustain a strong upward trajectory.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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