KSE-100 Dips as PSX Sees Selling Spree

Key Takeaways

KSE-100 Index drops over 300 points in early trading.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif meets IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.
Global markets remain cautious amid geopolitical tensions.

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) saw a significant downturn on Thursday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index shedding over 300 points during the opening minutes of trading. At 9:50am, the index was hovering at 171,929.43, down 303.08 points or 0.18%. This decline was observed across key sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, and OMCs.

Notable index heavy stocks such as LUCK, HBL, MCB, MEBL, UBL, MARI, OGDC, PPL, PSO, and SSGC traded in the red, reflecting the overall negative sentiment. The selling pressure was widespread, indicating a broad-based market reaction.

In a related development, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly 2026. The meeting came as an IMF mission started discussions with Pakistani authorities for the next review under the $7-billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).

According to a statement from the PM’s office, Prime Minister Shehbaz thanked the IMF for its continued support for Pakistan’s economy and reaffirmed his government’s unwavering commitment to successfully implementing the IMF-supported reform programme. In a tweet, Georgieva highlighted the positive impact of strong implementation, stating, 'Strong implementation has helped preserve stability, restore confidence and regain market access.'

On Wednesday, the PSX rallied strongly, gaining 830.43 points or 0.48%, to close at 172,232.51. This was driven by constructive US-Iran discussions, the arrival of an IMF staff mission, and aggressive buying in refinery stocks amid expectations of progress on long-awaited upgrade agreements. Investor sentiment was bolstered by these factors.

Globally, markets remained cautious, with debt markets on edge. Japanese bonds followed Treasuries lower, while Asian equities were mixed. Tokyo markets reopened after a three-day holiday, and the benchmark 10-year Japanese government bond yield reached a 30-year high after a steep sell-off in the US market overnight.

Oil prices eased from recent highs, and the greenback held gains after Tehran’s leader vowed to never surrender following a warning by US President Donald Trump that he could 'annihilate' Iran. Market participants looked ahead to a series of central bank speeches and economic releases, including US jobless claims, for signals on future interest rate hikes.

A summit between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping was also in focus, with hopes for progress on trade relations. The MSCI Asia ex-Japan index fell 0.64%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.73%. Australian shares hit a more than three-month low, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index falling 1.2%.