After a strong start led by buying momentum, profit-taking was observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) as the benchmark KSE-100 Index closed lower by 310 points on Wednesday.
The KSE-100 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 close, the benchmark index settled at 95,546.45, a decrease of 310.21 points or 0.32%.
“The market experienced notable volatility, with the index reaching a peak of 96,711 and a low of 95,312, as investors remained cautious ahead of the political protest scheduled for November 24,” brokerage house Topline Securities said in its post-market report.
“Additionally, heavier-than-usual foreign corporate selling yesterday added to the pressure,” it added.
Negative contributions from SYS, HBL, LUCK, MCB, and SNGP collectively dragged the index down by 348 points. However, FFC, COLG, and KAPCO partially offset these losses, adding a combined 354 points to the index, Topline said.
On Tuesday, stocks rose as the market extended a buying spree that had 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%.
Overall, the market sentiment has remained optimistic in recent weeks, which comes on the back of positive macroeconomic indicators including a decline in inflation rates.
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.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani rupee recorded a marginal decline against the US dollar, depreciating 0.03% in the inter-bank market on Wednesday. At close, the currency settled at 278.04, a loss of Re0.09 against the greenback.
Volume on the all-share index increased to 1,138.41 million from 830.93 million on Tuesday.
The value of shares rose to Rs37.48 billion from Rs30.02 billion in the previous session.
K-Electric Ltd was the volume leader with 174.39 million shares, followed by Hascol Petrol with 63.97 million shares, and Kohinoor Spining with 63.00 million shares.
Shares of 456 companies were traded on Wednesday, of which 156 registered an increase, 251 recorded a fall, while 49 remained unchanged.