Bears Take Control as PSX Plunges by Over 1,300 Points

Bears controlled the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Tuesday as the benchmark KSE-100 index lost 1,309 points to close at 114,860 points, down 1.41 percent over the previous closing.    A total of 1,252,980,316 shares were traded during the day as compared to 1,470,661,659 shares the previous day. The price of shares stood at Rs. 62.72 billion against Rs. 66.63 billion on the last trading day.      469 companies transacted their shares in the stock market today with 134 of them recording gains and 296 sustaining losses, whereas the share price of 39 companies remained unchanged.  A day earlier, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) had announced its fifth consecutive rate cut, reducing the policy rate by 200 basis points to 13 percent.   Brokerage house Topline Securities highlighted that the market witnessed extreme volatility throughout the day as investors digested the rate cut decision.  The benchmark index experienced significant swings, reaching an intraday high of 869 points before plunging to an intraday low of 2,480 points, the brokerage house pointed out.   Profit-taking gained momentum in the latter half of the session, amplifying volatility and further pressuring the market downward. The downward trajectory was primarily driven by MARI, FFC, LUCK, OGDC, and PPL, which collectively contributed 1,696 points to the index’s decline, Topline added.  In a positive development, November 2024’s expected current account surplus came in at over $700 million, the highest in nearly 10 years.