Volatility at bourse, KSE-100 sheds over 800 points in intra-day trading

Volatility was observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Friday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index losing over 800 points during the first half of the trading session.

At 12pm, the benchmark index was hovering at 163,620.18, a decrease of 824.53 points or 0.5%.

Selling was observed in key sectors including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs, power generation and refinery. Index-heavy stocks ARL, HUBCO, MARI, POL, PSO, SSGC, SNGPL, MCB, MEBL and UBL, traded in the red.

On Thursday, the PSX closed on a negative note as heavy profit-taking in major sectors, even as the bourse witnessed its highest-ever trading volume on record. The benchmark KSE-100 Index fell by 1,241.66 points, or 0.75%, to close at 164,444.72 points

Internationally, Asian shares tracked Wall Street lower, bonds extended gains and gold hit a fresh record on Friday, with signs of credit stress at US regional banks putting investors on edge.

Overnight, Zions sank 13% after disclosing it would take a $50 million loss in the third quarter on two loans from its California division. Western Alliance’s stock slumped 11% after it initiated a lawsuit alleging fraud by Cantor Group V, LLC.

The two developments pummeled US banking stocks.

Both S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures lost 0.3% ahead of more earnings from US regional banks later in the day. European stock futures fell 0.7%, while FTSE futures dropped 0.9%.

Sentiment in equities has also taken a hit due to rising trade tensions between China and the United States. China on Thursday accused the US of stoking panic over its rare earth controls, rejecting a White House call to roll back the curbs.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 0.9%, taking the week to negative territory. Japan’s Nikkei lost 1% as its banking index tumbled.

Taiwan’s shares fell 0.9% even after chipmaker TSMC posted a record quarterly profit and issued a rosy forecast for spending on artificial intelligence.

This is an intra-day update