KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed heavy selling pressure on Tuesday as escalating tensions between the United States and Iran triggered widespread investor anxiety, causing the benchmark KSE-100 Index to lose nearly 5,000 points during intraday trading.
By 12:04pm, the benchmark KSE-100 Index had fallen 4,985.01 points, or 2.77%, to 174,942.03, reflecting broad-based selling across the market.
Major sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, oil marketing firms, and power producers, remained under significant pressure. Leading index-weighted stocks such as Mari Energies, Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC), Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), Hub Power Company (HUBCO), MCB Bank, Meezan Bank, and United Bank Limited (UBL) all traded in negative territory.
The sharp decline followed Monday’s bearish session, when the KSE-100 Index closed below the 180,000-point level after losing 2,314.73 points, or 1.27%, to settle at 179,927.05, amid rising geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East.
Global financial markets also experienced heightened volatility after US President Donald Trump announced the reinstatement of a blockade on Iranian shipping and proposed a 20% transit fee on cargo passing through the Strait of Hormuz. The announcement pushed Brent crude oil prices up 2.6% to $85.50 per barrel, their highest level in about a month.
Investor sentiment was further affected by signals from the US Federal Reserve indicating that interest rate increases may remain under consideration if inflation continues to exceed the central bank’s target.
