The Pakistan stock market experienced a significant downturn on Wednesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 index tumbling by over 1,600 points amidst a broad-based sell-off that wiped more than Rs142 billion from the market”s total capitalisation.
The KSE-100 index concluded the trading session at 164,626.29 points, a decline of 1,632.25 points or 0.98 per cent from the previous day”s close of 166,258.55. The index demonstrated volatility throughout the day, reaching a high of 168,191.65 before succumbing to selling pressure and touching an intraday low of 164,229.36.
The negative sentiment was also reflected in the KSE-30 index, which represents the top 30 companies. It retreated by 575.33 points, or a sharper 1.13 per cent, to settle at 50,342.54.
Market activity in the regular segment saw a noticeable contraction. The total traded volume diminished to 619.63 million shares, compared to 687.96 million shares on the preceding day.
Similarly, the traded value experienced a substantial reduction, dropping to Rs29.25 billion from Rs38.47 billion recorded previously.
The overall market capitalisation of the exchange eroded to Rs18,668.51 trillion from Rs18,811.38 trillion, marking a single-day loss of Rs142.87 billion for investors.
In contrast to the regular market, the Deliverable Futures Contracts (DFC) segment witnessed a surge in activity. Turnover in futures jumped to 514.77 million contracts from a previous 354.13 million, with the traded value rising to Rs23.88 billion from Rs22.30 billion.