RECORDER REPORT
KARACHI: Pakistan Stock Exchange extended its losing streak for a third consecutive session, as investors grappled with rollover pressures, a weak economic outlook, and a national flood alert.
The benchmark KSE-100 Index tumbled 941.03 points, or 0.63 percent, to close at 147,494.03, sliding below Tuesday’s 148,435.06 points. The index oscillated between 149,237.92 and 147,337.02 points, showing a brief rebound that quickly gave way to widespread selling.
The BRIndex100 ended at 14,975.70, down 72.48 points or 0.48 percent on a total volume of 647.50 million shares, while BRIndex30 slipped 451.81 points or 1.04 percent to 42,788.37 points, with 328.07 million shares traded.
Ahsan Mehanti of Arif Habib Corporation attributed the decline to the State Bank of Pakistan’s subdued 3.2 percent growth projection for FY26, institutional profit-taking in an overbought market, leveraged futures rollovers, the proposed industrial gas tariff hike, and persistent political uncertainty.
Market breadth mirrored the weakness, with 312 of 477 active companies declining, 129 advancing, and 36 unchanged. Gains by Meezan Bank, Engro Holdings, and MCB Bank added 137 points, but heavyweights Habib Bank, Fatima Fertilizer, Service Industries, National Bank, and Mari Petroleum dragged the index down by 331 points collectively.
Trading volumes surged to 856.7 million shares from 665.4 million, yet traded value fell to 29.3 billion rupees from 31.5 billion, signaling activity concentrated in lower-priced stocks. Total market capitalization slipped Rs 110 billion to Rs 17.529 trillion from yesterday’s Rs 17.639 trillion.
Top turnover leaders were Pace Pak Ltd. with 87.64 million shares at 7.06 rupees, Bank Makramah with 58.85 million at 5.29 rupees, and TPL Properties at 42.67 million shares, closing at 10.69 rupees.
Among notable movers, Unilever Pakistan Foods jumped Rs 1,982.42 to Rs 32,320.00, and PIA Holding Company B rose Rs 449.23 to Rs 27,000.00. Conversely, Rafhan Maize Products fell Rs 92.36 to Rs 9,537.63, and Hoechst Pakistan dropped Rs 91.19 to Rs 3,715.97.
Sectoral performance was mixed. The BR Automobile Assembler Index gained 64.05 points or 0.26 percent to 24,289.24 on 1.97 million shares, while BR Cement dropped 133.41 points or 1.13 percent to 11,687.25 on 27.08 million shares.
BR Commercial Banks lost 164.21 points or 0.37 percent to 44,219.79 on 111.98 million shares, and BR Power Generation and Distribution slipped 89.55 points or 0.39 percent to 22,796.64 on 23.22 million shares.
BR Oil and Gas fell 102 points or 0.79 percent to 12,745.68 on 33.89 million shares, while BR Technology and Communication declined 36.67 points or 1.11 percent to 3,280.94 on 84.79 million shares.
Topline Securities highlighted that the losing streak was exacerbated by rollover anxieties and a warning from the National Disaster Management Authority, which flagged exceptionally high flood risks for Lahore and parts of Punjab due to heavy rainfall and upstream water releases from India. This triggered aggressive selling in the second half of the day.
