After a strong start led by buying momentum, profit-taking was observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), causing the benchmark KSE-100 Index to lose nearly 350 points during intra-day trading on Wednesday.
The benchmark index began the trading session on a positive note, climbing to an intra-day high of 96,711 during early hours.
However, the market was unable to sustain the momentum as investors opted to book profit on available margins.
At 1:30pm, the benchmark index was hovering at 95,507.97, a decrease of 348.69 points or 0.36%.
However, the overall market sentiment remains optimistic, which comes on the back of positive macroeconomic indicators including a decline in inflation rates. This has sparked hopes of a further policy rate cut.
As per Topline Securities, the slowing inflationary trend in Pakistan is likely to continue as the CPI-based figure is expected to fall below 5% in November, marking a 78-month low.
Buying was witnessed in key sectors including cement, commercial banks, fertilizer, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs and power generation. Index-heavy stocks including KE, PSO, SHEL, OGDC, PPL, MARI, MEBL, NBP and HBL traded in the green.
On Tuesday, stocks rose again as the market extended a buying spree that has pushed the benchmark KSE-100 to a series of record highs. The index closed above 95,000 for the first time to settle at 95,856.67, up by 861 points or 0.91%.
Globally, Asian shares were cautious on Wednesday as investors looked ahead to earnings results from AI darling Nvidia where the risk of disappointment is high, while the dollar gave back a little of its recent bumper gains.
The world’s most valuable company Nvidia will report its third-quarter results after the bell.
Shares already climbed 4.9% overnight and options imply a big move of almost 9% either direction in the $3.6 trillion stock often seen as a barometer for the tech sector’s shift to AI.
Nasdaq futures rose 0.2% on Wednesday on top of a 1% jump overnight. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was flat and Tokyo’s Nikkei slipped 0.3%.
Bitcoin last held at $91,914, having broken above $94,000 for the first time overnight on expectations that US President-elect Donald Trump’s administration will be crypto-friendly.
This is an intra-day update