It was another challenging day at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), as the market continued its correction phase. The benchmark index closed at approximately 106,200 after a staggering decline of 4,795 points on Thursday, marking one of its worst single-day losses ever.
This drop followed a previous record loss of 3,790 points just a day earlier. Over the last three trading sessions, the PSX has plummeted nearly 10,000 points from its peak of 116,169.41 on December 16, 2024.
Throughout the trading day, selling pressure was persistent, pushing the benchmark index to an intraday low of 105,937.37. Ultimately, it settled at 106,274.98—down 4,795.32 points or 4.32%.
Various sectors, including chemicals, commercial banking, power generation, and refineries, faced significant selling pressure. Major stocks such as MARI, HUBCO, NRL, HBL, NBP, MCB, and UBL also closed in the red.
The market’s downturn was anticipated, with analysts noting that investors were likely to engage in profit-taking following the recent bull run. Despite the negative sentiment, some experts see this as a buying opportunity, asserting that key factors supporting the market—like liquidity and low political noise—remain intact.
As the trading day began, the market opened lower but briefly recovered before hitting a downward spiral driven by opportunistic selling. Saad Hanif, Head of Research at Ismail Iqbal Securities, highlighted that this correction was long overdue and pointed out that stock prices have become attractive for potential investors.
Moreover, the ongoing sharp sell-off was reportedly influenced by significant withdrawals from local mutual funds and year-end profit-taking by institutional investors.
In an important development, the government also introduced the “Tax Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024,” in the National Assembly, aimed at tightening regulations on non-filers to better allocate financial resources for economic growth. The bill restricts non-filers from buying high-capacity vehicles, acquiring large property, and making substantial stock purchases.
On the global front, Asian markets mirrored the downturn in the U.S., led by a sharp drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which fell more than 1,000 points. The Pakistani rupee experienced a slight drop against the US dollar, settling at 278.35, down 0.04%.
Trading volume increased to 1.17 billion shares, although the total value of shares declined to Rs 56.80 billion from Rs 60.25 billion. WorldCall Telecom topped the volume chart with 177.64 million shares traded, followed by K-Electric and Cnergyico PK. Out of 472 companies traded, 66 saw gains, while 371 suffered declines, leaving 35 unchanged.
