RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) came under renewed pressure on Monday as across-the-board profit-taking and cautious investor sentiment dragged the indices lower at the onset of rollover week.

The benchmark KSE-100 Index plunged 677.75 points, or 0.45 percent, to close at 148,815.31, compared to the previous session’s 149,493.06 points. The index oscillated sharply, hitting an intraday high of 150,079.76 before slipping to a low of 148,757.14, eventually closing deep in the red.

The BRIndex100 settled at 15,058.80 points, down 46.76 points or 0.31 percent, with a robust 560.967 million shares traded. Similarly, the BRIndex30 fell 113.27 points, or 0.26 percent, to close at 42,931.09 on a turnover of 348.236 million shares.

According to Topline Securities, the market started rollover week on a volatile note, with sharp swings in the benchmark index. Gains in BAFL, NBP, SEARL, and PABC contributed 92 points, but losses in heavyweights such as BAHL, SYS, MEBL, HBL, and LUCK collectively dragged the index down by 394 points.

Market participation weakened in the ready counter, where turnover fell to 693.3 million shares, compared with 802 million shares a session earlier. The traded value also shrank to Rs 26.3 billion from Rs 40.4 billion, while overall market capitalization contracted by Rs 73.5 billion, closing at Rs 17.662 trillion.

Kohinoor Spinning dominated the volume chart with 113.8 million shares, closing at Rs 7.07. It was followed by Secure Logistics, which traded 32.6 million shares and settled at Rs 18.42, while Sui Southern Gas finished at Rs 42.27 with 27 million shares traded.

Among gainers, Dawood Lawrencepur Limited surged Rs 32.08 to Rs 352.92, and Gadoon Textile Mills rose Rs 31.95 to Rs 449.26. On the losing side, Unilever Pakistan Foods plunged Rs 944.36 to Rs 30,336.89, while PIA Holding Company B shed Rs 653.30 to Rs 27,112.10, dragging the broader market lower.

Market breadth remained negative, with 204 scrips advancing against 246 that declined, while 29 remained unchanged out of 479 active companies.

On the sectoral front, the BR Cement Index led the decline, plunging 592.65 points or 4.81 percent to close at 11,720.38, with 16.39 million shares traded. The BR Automobile Assembler Index slipped 108.44 points or 0.45 percent to 24,189.87 on 2.86 million shares.

The BR Commercial Banks Index ended at 44,969.25, down 255.68 points or 0.57 percent, with volumes of 49.03 million shares. The BR Power Generation and Distribution Index showed only a marginal decline of 21.51 points or 0.10 percent, closing at 22,576.72, with 29.37 million shares traded.

The BR Oil and Gas Index eased 45.19 points or 0.35 percent to 12,816.13, on 40.56 million shares. Meanwhile, technology shares remained under pressure as the BR Technology & Communication Index dropped 51.36 points or 1.52 percent to 3,323.30, leading sectoral volumes with 66.16 million shares.

According to Ismail Iqbal Securities, the downturn reflected widespread selling pressure as volatility persisted throughout the session, largely attributed to the rollover week effect. It added that trading volumes on the all-share index fell to 211 million shares, underscoring the cautious stance of market participants.