KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a volatile session and sharply closed lower. The benchmark KSE-100 index dropped by 6,042 points amid geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and below-expected earnings at Fauji Fertiliser Company.
The KSE-100 plunged by 6,042.27 points or 3.21 per cent to 182,338.12 points from 188,380.39 points recorded in the last session. The highest index of the day remained at 188,923.4 points, while the lowest level was recorded at 181,961.15 points.
Ali Najib, deputy head of trading at Arif Habib Ltd, said the PSX witnessed a sharp sell-off. Market sentiment deteriorated amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, as war-related rhetoric between the US and Iran heightened fears of a broader regional conflict, triggering widespread risk aversion.
Adding to the pressure, Fauji Fertilizer Company’s (FFC) earnings announcement came in below market expectations, primarily due to margin compression, while the absence of a larger dividend, stock split or bonus issue, contrary to market speculation, deeply disappointed traders. This led to panic selling, with FFC hitting its lower circuit (-10 per cent) and closed the day at 596.62 level (-Rs. 65.81; down 9.93 per cent).
Furthermore, likely institutional-led across-the-board selling exacerbated losses, intensifying fears of further downside. “Due to heavy selling pressure, the 185k (first support) was breached, with the KSE-100 index touching an intra-day low of 181,961. Going forward, 180k now stands as a strong support, while a weekly close above 185k would signal a resumption of the bullish trend next week,” said Ali Najib.
The KSE-30 index decreased by 2,105.04 points, or 3.63 per cent, to 55,927.16 points from 58,032.2 points. Traded shares dropped by 20 million shares to 933.099 million shares from 953.917 million shares. The trading value increased to Rs66.413 billion from Rs48.877 billion. Market capitalisation narrowed to Rs20.617 trillion against Rs21.185 trillion. Of the 487 companies active in the session, 83 closed in green, 364 in red and 40 remained unchanged.
The highest increase was recorded in Gillette Pakistan Limited, which rose by Rs49.52 to Rs544.76 per share, followed by Blessed Textiles Limited, which increased by Rs46.09 to Rs506.96 per share. A significant decline was noted in PIA Holding Company Limited B, which fell by Rs539.87 to Rs20,039.25 per share. Unilever Pakistan Foods Limited followed it, which closed lower by Rs435.17 to Rs27,345.83 per share.
Naveed Nadeem, senior equity trader at Topline Securities, said Pakistan equities witnessed a sharp sell-off, with the market plunging into a severe downturn amid intense selling pressure.
The steep decline was largely driven by Fauji Fertilizer Company’s (FFC) earnings announcement, which fell short of market expectations due to weaker-than-anticipated gross margins. Furthermore, market speculation had fuelled expectations of a stock split or bonus issue—neither of which materialised. This divergence between investor expectations and actual outcomes triggered panic selling, as participants rushed to lock in recent gains, exacerbating the downward momentum.
FFC alone shaved 1,902 points from the index. Moreover, blue-chips stocks namely UBL, ENGROH, OGDC, HUBC, PPL, LUCK, SYS, HBL, and MARI, also came under heavy selling pressure, collectively dragging the index down by 2,116 points.
K-Electric Ltd. remained the volume leader with 104.156 million shares, which closed lower by 18 paisas to Rs7.12 per share. WorldCall Telecom with 48.363 million shares, followed it, which closed lower by 4 paisas to Rs1.67 per share.
Other significant turnover stocks included BO Punjab, Dost Steels Ltd, Waves Home App, PTCL, Sui South Gas, Nishat ChunPower, Fauji Fert and Pace (Pak) Ltd. In the futures market, 318 companies recorded trading, with 21 increasing and 297 decreasing.
