PSX marks impressive 3,200-point recovery a day after record drop in shares

Published
0
Activity at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Dec 20, 2024.— PSX data portal
Activity at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Dec 20, 2024.— PSX data portal

Bulls managed to regain hold of the trade floor after three days as shares at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) surged by over 3,200 points on Friday.

The surge comes a day after the benchmark KSE-100 index suffered the largest single-day point-wise loss of 3,790 points on unabated across-the-board selling pressure.

The KSE-100 index climbed by 3,238.17, or 3.05 per cent, to close at 109,513.14 points from the previous close of 106,274.97 at the end of today’s session.

The index lost over 5,000 points or 4.4pc in the previous two sessions post-rate cut, which could be classified as nervous selling if it was called panic-offloading despite positive economic indicators.

Tahir Abbas of Arif Habib Ltd (AHL) told Dawn yesterday that the correction was healthy since the market had consistently set records in recent weeks.

Bears had maintained control of the stock market for three days following the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP)’s announcement of a 200bps rate cut, coupled with guidance indicating a likely modest uptick in inflation in the coming months.

On Monday, SBP had reiterated that core inflation, which stood at 9.7pc, was “proving to be sticky, whereas inflation expectations of consumers and businesses remain volatile”, decidin on a cautious key interest rate cut of 200bps amid demands of a major rate cut.

Yesterday’s bearish momentum was attributed to a National Assembly bill aimed at targeting non-filers and restricting their ability to invest in mutual funds or maintain bank accounts, creating concern among investors.

However, analysts had assured that such broad-based compliance would ultimately benefit the equity market in the long run and is unlikely to have a significant impact on investment flows in the medium term.

Moreover, analysts had also attributed the decline to “stock-specific selling due to overvaluation concerns”.

Follow Dawn Business on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook for insights on business, finance and tech from Pakistan and across the world.

Opinion

Editorial

Muddled hierarchy
Updated 15 Nov, 2026

Muddled hierarchy

The jurisdiction of the two courts and a mechanism for settling disputes between them should be spelt out in law, not left to judges to fight over.
Growing crisis
15 Nov, 2026

Growing crisis

AN emergency can be judged by the speed with which it draws an effective response. The National Population Council’s...
Organised rackets
15 Nov, 2026

Organised rackets

ON the International Day against Transnational Organised Crime, observed today, Pakistan finds itself in a tight...
Referendum talk
Updated 14 Nov, 2026

Referendum talk

Unless the PPP is deliberately using Sindh as a bargaining chip, it should issue a clarification with a clear, consistent position on new administrative units, not one tailored to protect its home turf.
Mineral wealth
Updated 14 Nov, 2026

Mineral wealth

Minerals should not be presented as a solution to Pakistan’s long-term economic difficulties. The aim should be to build an industrial base rather than export raw materials.
Late diagnosis
14 Nov, 2026

Late diagnosis

AS we mark World Diabetes Day today, Pakistan faces a troubling question: how many people are living with diabetes...