Paraphrased News: KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) ended lower for the third consecutive session on Wednesday as the KSE-100 index saw sharp ups and downs throughout the day.
The benchmark index initially gained momentum, reaching an intra-day high of 166,947.19, but later came under heavy selling pressure, slipping to a low of 165,109.84. By the session’s end, the index had lost 907 points (0.55%), closing at 165,266.75.
According to KTrade Securities’ Ahmed Sheraz, investor sentiment weakened after the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) signaled that an interest rate cut is unlikely at the upcoming Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. He added that investor unease was further amplified by the IMF’s ongoing review of Pakistan’s economic performance.
Major stocks such as United Bank, Fauji Fertiliser, Lucky Cement, and Mari Energies dragged the index down, while Systems Limited (SYS) and Bank Alfalah helped limit losses with notable gains.
Arif Habib Limited (AHL) highlighted that the market’s inability to hold above 167,200 points indicates the next support levels lie between 163,800 and 164,200 points.
In total, 484 companies traded shares, out of which 148 gained, 297 declined, and 39 remained unchanged. Trading volumes rose slightly to 1.27 billion shares worth Rs61.1 billion.
PTCL topped the volume chart with 114.4 million shares, closing Rs2.23 higher at Rs33.37.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported that the country’s GDP grew by 3.04% in FY25, with the government projecting 4.2% growth for FY26.
