PSX: Benchmark index down over 2,000 points

Business Recorder reported an afternoon sell-off on the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Tuesday, with the KSE-100 index falling more than 2,000 points in trading. At the time of the report the benchmark stood at 178,488.91, down 2,013.53 points or 1%. Selling was broad, hitting automobile assemblers, cement makers, commercial banks, oil and gas explorers, fuel marketing companies and power generators.

Index-heavy stocks, among them HUBCO, MARI, OGDC, PPL, POL, MCB, MEBL, NBP and UBL, also traded in negative territory. Losses deepened after the Supreme Court ordered on Monday that former prime minister Imran Khan be moved to Shifa International Hospital for a medical examination, with Aaj News reporting that physician Dr Faisal Sultan and his sister Dr Uzma Khan will accompany him during treatment.

Outside Pakistan, oil prices crept higher and bond yields rose in early Asian trading after a US-Iran truce expired, with Tehran saying it would move to a fully offensive military posture. Brent crude was up 0.2% at $91.06 a barrel, while the Nikkei 225 fell 0.3%. The KSE-100 had closed Monday at 180,502.45 after a 0.22% gain, driven by refinery stocks.