The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) today experienced a severe downturn on Friday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index plunging by more than 1,600 points and erasing over PKR 158 billion from the market”s total capitalisation in a single trading session.
The KSE-100 Index concluded the day at 150,398.71, a decline of 1,612.55 points or 1.06 per cent from the previous close. Throughout the volatile session, the index touched a high of 152,103.63 before slumping to a low of 148,796.55, momentarily falling below the critical 150,000-point threshold.
Reflecting the broad-based negative sentiment, the KSE-30 Index also registered a substantial fall, closing at 45,453.36. The index shed 522.50 points, representing a steeper percentage decrease of 1.14 per cent.
The significant bearish pressure led to a considerable erosion in investor wealth. The total market capitalisation contracted to PKR 16,725.12 trillion from its previous standing of PKR 16,883.79 trillion, marking a substantial loss for shareholders.
Despite the sharp decline in share prices, market activity intensified significantly. Trading volume in the ready market swelled to 471.94 million shares, a marked increase from the 352.27 million shares traded a day earlier.
Similarly, the traded value escalated to PKR 24.64 billion, compared to the previous session”s PKR 19.51 billion, suggesting a day dominated by heavy selling pressure.
Activity in the Deliverable Future Contract (DFC) market also saw a notable uptick, with turnover rising to 118.93 million and traded value reaching over PKR 7 billion.