The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday witnessed a volatile session as selling pressure took over in the morning session, dragging down the index over 1,000 points amid the escalating conflict between the United States and Iran. However, late recovery helped the benchmark KSE-100 Index end the session in green.
At close, the benchmark index settled 175,927.73, a gain of 124.95 points, or 0.07%.
Meanwhile, majority of the heavy selling observed across major sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, fertilizer, oil and gas exploration, oil marketing companies (OMCs), and power generation.
The latest decline follows a difficult week for the PSX, which remained under sustained selling pressure amid intensifying geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and a sharp surge in international oil prices. The adverse global backdrop dented investor confidence, extending the market’s losing streak for a second consecutive week.
According to the weekly market review, the benchmark KSE-100 Index fell 3.5% week-on-week, losing 6,438.97 points to settle at 175,802.80.
Meanwhile, international oil prices continued to climb on Monday as the worsening US-Iran conflict raised concerns over potential disruptions to global energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude rose by about 3%, surpassing the $90-a-barrel mark.
Brent crude futures gained $2.77, or 3.14%, to $90.87 a barrel by 0612 GMT, their highest level since June 11. The benchmark extended last week’s rally of 15.9%, its strongest weekly gain since April.
