KSE-100 Index Sees 0.61% Decline: Correction Continues

In a volatile trading session on Wednesday, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) experienced a continued correction phase, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index shedding nearly 400 points.

Closing at 62,448.01, the benchmark index recorded a decrease of 385.02 points or 0.61%. The intra-day low hit 61,082.50, marking a substantial drop of over 1,750 points. Sectors such as automobile assemblers, cement, chemical, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs, and pharmaceuticals faced selling pressure, pushing the market into the red zone.

The correction comes after the market exhibited impressive growth, reaching record highs of over 66,000 in recent weeks. Analysts attribute the correction to overdue profit-taking, with investors eager to sell shares they deemed overpriced.

Sana Tawfik, an analyst at Arif Habib Limited (AHL), stated, "Profit-taking was overdue as the market had seen a remarkable run lately. Investors were waiting to sell their shares which they believe were overpriced."

Share financing exceeding 30% is also identified as a contributing factor to the market's decline.

Throughout the year, the KSE-100 Index witnessed a substantial bullish run, gaining almost 60%. Sectors leading the downturn included banking (117.68 points), cement (74.94 points), and fertilizer (55.36 points).

The all-share index's volume decreased from 1.51 billion to 1.19 billion, while the value of shares declined from Rs29.1 billion to Rs26 billion compared to the previous session.

K-Electric Limited emerged as the volume leader with 280.81 million shares, followed by WorldCall Telecom with 211.12 million, and Cnergyico PK with 54.41 million shares.

In Wednesday's trading, 362 companies were listed, with 107 recording an increase, 246 facing a fall, and 9 remaining unchanged.