Stocks dip 561 points on IMF bailout conditions
KARACHI: Stocks continued the falling trend for the fourth straight session on Monday with the KSE-100 index suffering a loss of 560.82 points (1.37 per cent) to close at 40,326.53.
The cumulative loss since the index peaked out at 41,767 (intraday high on Feb 6) reached 3.45pc.
The market opened on a positive note but later suffered intense volatility with investors remaining undecided between the risk of taking fresh positions due to attractive valuations and the fear of further fall in the absence of positive news flow.
In early trade, investors were optimistic believing that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout was round the corner. But the finance minister clarified that the prime minister’s meeting with IMF chief Lagarde over the weekend was not a negotiation round and no deal was reached. It triggered selling as traders decided to reduce exposure in risky assets.
It was followed quickly by a fresh blow as Moody’s changed its outlook on Pakistan banking system to negative from stable, believing that banks would see their credit profiles challenged by high exposure to the low-rated sovereign debt and a slowing economy.