Equities plunge 4,864 points on war-driven panic
KARACHI: Amid surging oil prices in the backdrop of worsening war scenario in the Middle East, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday came under extreme selling pressure, dragging the KSE-100 benchmark index below the 145,000 milestone intraday, overshadowing the positive news of signing an agreement between Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the release of due tranche under the two programmes.
The benchmark KSE-100 index remained in negative territory from the beginning of trade, hitting an intraday low of 144,656.97, a sharp decline of 7,050.55. However, late value-hunting helped it trim some of its early losses, and it closed at 146,842.97, a decline of 4,864.54 points or 3.21 per cent, inflicting a staggering loss of Rs558.37 billion on equity investors in a single session.
Ali Najib, Deputy Head of Trading at Arif Habib Ltd (AHL), said that since February 9, it has been the seventh consecutive Monday, excluding March 23, during which the market has experienced significant sell-offs, mostly driven by adverse geopolitical developments.
Investor participation stayed cautious, keeping overall momentum fragile and contributing to increased volatility, he added.
On Saturday, the IMF announced that it had reached a Staff-Level Agreement with Pakistan for the disbursement of about $1.2bn on the successful conclusion of the third review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the second review under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), providing a degree of underlying support to sentiment.
On the corporate side, Engro Corporation announced that its board of directors has approved a share buyback of up to 45 million shares, scheduled between May 7 and Oct 25, to improve cash flow efficiency and offer an exit opportunity for investors.
Topline Securities Ltd said the PSX felt the pressure as surging oil prices and escalating geopolitical tensions unsettled investors. Adding to the anxiety, investors grew cautious over the government’s decision to keep fuel prices unchanged for a second consecutive week, raising concerns of fiscal strain.
On the index front, heavyweights Fauji Fertiliser Company, Engro Holdings, Meezan Bank, Lucky Cement, United Bank, Habib Bank, National Bank, Pakistan Petroleum, PSO, and Engro Fertiliser collectively eroded approximately 2,440 points from the benchmark.
Amid a bearish trend, investors opted to offload their positions, as reflected in total trading volume, which rose 21.49pc to 529 million shares, and turnover, which increased 23.39pc to Rs29.6bn. K-Electric emerged as the volume leader, with 56.5 million shares.
Developments in the Middle East will remain a key driver, with an unpredictable flow of geopolitical news likely to influence short-term market trends.
Published in Dawn, March 31st, 2026