After a week of uncertainty, bearish sentiment returned to the trading floor of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday as shares opened the week in the red.

According to the PSX website, the KSE-100 index declined by 925.35 points to close at 65,204.67 points, down 1.4 per cent from the previous close of 66,130.02.

Top active stocks included Worldcall Telecom Limited, K-Electric Limited, Cnergyico PK Limited, Hascol Petroleum Limited and The Bank of Punjab.

The stock market observed a roller coaster ride last week, closing at 66,130 points after declining by 94 points or 0.14pc from a week ago.

According to analysts, anxiety over the strained rupee position amid rising demand and poor inflows of dollars has increased. The dwindling inflows are set against the backdrop of import expenditures that are twice as high as exports.

Amreen Soorani, head of research at JS Global, noted that the index had rallied by more than 60pc this year. “Therefore, investors are bound to book profits at some point as witnessed since the past trade sessions,” she said.

“A correction after a sharp rise can be healthy for the market. The index is still undervalued and has upside on the cards, in addition to attractive dividend yield picks,” she added.

Raza Jafri, head of equities at Intermarket Securities, told Dawn.com that Pakistan was entering a “critical phase” in the next few months where it would have to navigate elections and enter the successor International Monetary Fund programme in a “timely manner”.

“We remain positive across 2024, but there can be nervous days in the near term, especially given the market’s quick run-up in the last few months,” he said.