The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) extended its downward trend on Friday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index shedding 1,335.01 points, or 0.81%, during the first half of the trading session amid widespread selling pressure.
According to PSX data, the index stood at 162,589.30 points at the Friday prayers break, compared with the previous session’s closing level of 163,924.31.
The market opened near 163,869 points and initially showed some resilience, reaching an intraday high of 163,966.86. However, selling pressure soon intensified, dragging the benchmark down to a session low of 162,407.61.
The decline affected several key sectors, including commercial banking, oil and gas exploration, oil marketing, power generation, cement, automobile assembly and refining.
Major index constituents, including Hub Power Company (HUBC), Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), Pakistan Oilfields Limited (POL), United Bank Limited (UBL) and MCB Bank, traded in negative territory.
The broad-based losses continued the weakness witnessed in the previous trading session, with selling across heavyweight stocks weighing on the benchmark index.
Despite the downward movement, trading activity remained substantial during the first half of the session.
PSX data showed that the regular market recorded 144,593 trades, with approximately 159.1 million shares changing hands.
The total value of shares traded reached around Rs7.66 billion by the Friday prayers break.
The latest decline added to the market’s losses, with the KSE-100 Index recording a year-to-date decrease of 6.59%.
The benchmark was also down 1.22% over the preceding 12 months, according to the exchange’s figures.
The index’s 52-week trading range stands between 144,119.44 and 191,032.73 points, reflecting considerable fluctuations in market performance over the past year.
The figures represent trading activity up to the midday break, with the market’s final closing position yet to be determined.