Political uncertainty rattles PSX, KSE-100 sheds over 100 points

• At close, KSE-100 index sheds 0.23% to settle at 44,337.56 points.
• Arif Habib Limited notes mainboard activity remained dull.
• Shares of 354 were traded during the session.

KARACHI: Uncertainty amid noise from the domestic political front kept the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) in the red zone, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index closing the session with a loss of over 100 points.

A record-breaking downward streak of the Pakistani rupee against the US dollar coupled with the ongoing political crisis in the wake of a no-confidence motion kept the investors on the sidelines.

At the close, the KSE-100 Index shed 101.14 points, or 0.23%, to settle at 44,337.56 points.

A report from Arif Habib Limited noted that the benchmark KSE-100 Index stayed in the red territory during the day due to political unrest and further rupee devaluation against the US dollar.

“Mainboard activity remained dull,” it said, adding that on the flip-side, activity continued to remain side-ways as the market witnessed hefty volumes in the third-tier stocks.

Shares of 354 were traded during the session. At the close of trading, 158 scrips closed in the green, 169 in the red, and 27 remained unchanged.

Overall trading volumes rose to 344.13 million shares compared with Tuesday’s tally of 268.91 million. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs7.8 billion.

K-Electric was the volume leader with 38.41 million shares traded, value remained unchanged to close at Rs3.11. It was followed by Ghani Global Holdings with 31.11 million shares traded, gaining Rs0.34 to close at Rs16.24, and WorldCall Telecom with 19.94 million shares traded, gaining Rs0.03 to close at Rs1.73.