PSX: KSE-100 settles 1,100 points lower amid late selling

Business Recorder reported that the benchmark index ended Wednesday's session 1,109.14 points lower at 176,846.36, a decline of 0.62%, after swinging between gains and losses. The market opened on a firmer footing and the KSE-100 climbed to an intraday peak of 178,942.31, but selling pressure built up through the day. Late in the afternoon the index slid to an intraday low of 176,638.10 before recovering only marginally at the close.

The State Bank of Pakistan released figures on Tuesday showing the current account deficit narrowed 38% year-on-year in July 2026, to $328 million from $529 million a year earlier. Higher exports and healthy workers' remittances supported the improvement, which amounted to $201 million. The index had already shed 2,546.94 points, or 1.41%, on Tuesday as domestic political uncertainty and rising crude oil prices weighed on sentiment.

Overseas, MSCI's broadest Asia-Pacific index excluding Japan fell 1.7% and Japan's Nikkei lost 2.6%, following tech-led losses on Wall Street. Regional technology and semiconductor shares also came under pressure, while the yen hovered near 160 per dollar, a level investors view as a possible trigger for intervention.