Business Recorder
Selling pressure continued unabated at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index shedding nearly 1,200 points during the opening minutes of trading on Friday. At 9:29am, the benchmark index was hovering at 167,996.63, down by 1,176.74 points or 0.70%. Selling was observed in key sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, fertiliser, oil and gas exploration companies and power generation. Index-heavy stocks, including HUBCO, MARI, OGDC, PPL, FFC, UBL and HBL, traded in the red. On Thursday, bears dominated the PSX as investors stayed cautious amid prevailing uncertainty and awaited clearer signals on geopolitical developments. The benchmark KSE-100 Index declined by 2,406 points or 1.40%, to close at 169,173.38 points. Internationally, Asia shares struggled on Friday, and oil prices resumed their rise, as a shaky ceasefire in the Middle East war and stalled US-Iran peace talks gave investors little to cheer. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.3% and was set to end the week with a 0.8% gain, while Japan’s Nikkei added 0.45% and stocks in South Korea, China and Hong Kong fell. Nasdaq futures and S&P 500 futures advanced 0.6% and 0.1%, respectively, after closing lower in the cash session overnight, while EUROSTOXX 50 futures were down 0.65% and FTSE futures fell 0.9%. The mixed showing underscored the tense market mood as investors this week seesawed between hope for an imminent end to the war and fear that it might not come soon. Iran on Thursday flaunted its tightened grip over the key Strait of Hormuz with a video of commandos in a speedboat storming a huge cargo ship, while U.S. President Donald Trump said he had ordered the Navy to “shoot and kill” Iranian boats laying mines in the strait, and step up demining activity. Trump’s comments came just days after he said he would indefinitely extend what had been a two-week ceasefire with Iran to allow for further peace talks. This is an intra-day update
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