PSX dips 1,109 points over fuel price concerns

The Express Tribune reported that the Pakistan Stock Exchange gave up its early gains on Wednesday and closed lower, with the benchmark KSE-100 sliding 1,109.15 points, or 0.62 per cent, to end at 176,846.36. Selling built up late in the session as oil prices rose and doubts persisted over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Oil prices reached their highest level in about three weeks, while disruptions to global supplies and the Hormuz uncertainty raised worries about energy costs and the wider economy. A report that the prime minister had asked the petroleum minister to travel to Karachi and hold talks with refineries on fuel relief added further pressure.

Refinery stocks drove much of the decline, and market breadth stayed weak, with 185 of 496 traded companies closing higher, 271 falling and 40 unchanged. Volume shrank to 787.9 million shares from 1.04 billion on Tuesday, while the value of shares traded reached Rs39.6 billion. Cnergyico Pk led on volume with 217.5 million shares traded, and foreign investors sold Rs827.5 million worth of shares, according to the National Clearing Company.