PSX: selling at bourse, KSE-100 down over 800 points

Selling was observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) amid expectations of a policy rate hike by the Monetary Policy Committee, which is expected to meet today, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index shedding over 800 points during the opening minutes of trading on Monday.

At 9:50am, the benchmark index was hovering at 161,542.30, down 832.57 points or 0.51%.

Key sectors observed selling pressure, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs, power generation and refineries. Index-heavy stocks, including HUBCO, OGDC, MARI, PPL, HBL, MEBL and NBP, traded in the red.

In a key development, the MPC of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) is scheduled to meet today (Monday) to review the key policy rate.

Analysts expect the SBP to increase the policy rate by 50 bps to mitigate any prolonged inflationary and external shocks, as uncertainty still prevails.

During the previous week, PSX extended its losing streak to a fifth consecutive week, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index shedding 4,044.84 points, or 2.4% week-on-week, to close at 162,374.84 points as Brent crude surged make Pakistan’s trade deficit widened and persistent geopolitical tensions compounded domestic economic uncertainty.

Globally, stock markets traded cautiously on Monday as oil eased from six-month highs ahead of a week packed with central bank meetings and corporate earnings that will ​further test investor confidence in the AI boom.

Brent oil slipped 1.6% to $114.88 following reports that Qatari mediators were in Tehran on Sunday as part of an ‌effort to de-escalate regional tensions in coordination with the US.

Brent futures jumped 6.2% last week to their highest weekly close since mid-2022 as Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia stoked concerns about energy supplies. US crude futures fell 1.9% to $101.29 a barrel.

Japan’s Nikkei dipped 0.5% after losing 4.0% last week, while South Korea’s main index fell 1.1%, having shed almost 20% so far this month. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares excluding ​Japan eased 0.1%.

Chinese blue chips lost 1.0%, as China’s ruling Communist Party began its fifth plenum in Beijing. The market has now fallen for 11 weeks straight amid ​concerns about domestic demand - even as exports remain strong.

The inflationary pulse from oil is likely to alarm all the central banks that are ⁠meeting this week, with hikes seen as just a matter of time even if some hold for now.

This is an intraday update