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KARACHI:
Stocks came under selling pressure at the Pakistan bourse on Thursday as the benchmark KSE-100 index gave up early gains and closed with a drop of over 700 points amid profit-taking.
At the commencement of trading, the market extended its healthy momentum of the past two days, hitting intra-day high at 123,418 within the very first hour. However, profit-taking emerged soon afterwards, which gradually took the index to intra-day low of 122,142 before the end of trading.
“Stocks closed under pressure amid economic uncertainty ahead of the outcome of Pakistan-US reciprocal tariff talks to avoid potential 29% tariffs on exports,” said Arif Habib Corp MD Ahsan Mehanti.
Uncertainty about federal cabinet’s approval of the revised Finance Bill 2025, along with concerns over tax collection targets and expanded powers for taxmen, which could affect industries, fuelled the bearish close, he added.
At the end of trading, the KSE-100 index settled at 122,046.46, down 715.18 points, or 0.58%.
Early gains were extended up to 123,418 before the market came off highs to close 0.58% lower day-on-day at 122,046, Arif Habib Limited (AHL) wrote in its daily report. On KSE-100, 71 stocks declined and only 27 advanced, reflecting a broadly negative sentiment. Engro Holdings (+2.22%), National Foods (+8.07%) and Pakistan Petroleum (+0.79%) were the top contributors to index gains. On the other hand, Bank AL Habib (-2.84%), Lucky Cement (-1.86%) and HBL (-2.59%) were the major drags, it said.
AHL pointed out that the Supreme Court granted relief to the cement sector by suspending the Lahore High Court’s directive that required Punjab-based manufacturers to pay 6% of the ex-factory price in royalty on limestone.
Apart from that, The Organic Meat Company (+5.64%) announced plans to export beef casings to Europe, a significant move seen by investors as a step towards diversification and growth.
“Heading into last session of the week, the KSE-100 is up 1.69%,” AHL said and anticipated that 120k would continue as the support level and a base for push towards 130k.
Topline Securities reported that after two consecutive sessions of strong gains, the local bourse witnessed a round of profit-taking, driven by fiscal year-end considerations and short-term portfolio rebalancing.
The benchmark index saw a volatile ride, climbing as high as 656 points before slipping to the low of 715 points. It settled at 122,046, reflecting a cautious investor mood as the quarter was drawing to a close.
Engro Holdings, National Foods, Pakistan Petroleum and Tariq Glass Industries provided the biggest support, adding 228 points to the index. Meanwhile, Bank AL Habib, Lucky Cement, HBL, Pakistan Services and Systems Limited dragged the index down by 407 points, it said.
KTrade Securities observed that the PSX showed signs of buyers’ exhaustion as investors booked profits following a recent rally driven by the US-brokered ceasefire between Iran and Israel.
Selling pressure was concentrated in banking, cement and technology sectors and market sentiment remained cautiously optimistic, contingent on the ceasefire’s sustainability, it mentioned.
JS Global analyst Mubashir Anis Naviwala, in his review, wrote that the market opened on a positive note, touching intra-day high of 123,418 early in the session. However, broad-based profit-taking set in after two strong bullish days, which dragged the index into the red. Naviwala saw a positive near-term outlook as dips may offer attractive entry opportunities.
Overall trading volumes increased to 758.5 million shares compared with Wednesday’s tally of 749.8 million. The value of shares traded was Rs30 billion. Shares of 473 companies were traded. Of these, 200 stocks closed higher, 237 fell and 36 remained unchanged.
Pakistan International Bulk Terminal was the volume leader with trading in 37.5 million shares, losing Rs0.06 to close at Rs8.52. It was followed by WorldCall Telecom with 33.3 million shares, falling Rs0.04 to close at Rs1.45 and Pervez Ahmed Consultancy with 33 million shares, gaining Rs0.25 to close at Rs3.29. Foreign investors sold shares worth Rs967 million, the National Clearing Company reported.
