Oil, ME tensions drive PSX down

The Pakistan Stock Exchange slipped into negative territory this week as renewed Middle East tensions and higher crude prices weighed on investors, The Express Tribune reported. The benchmark KSE-100 closed at 170,512, down 4,817 points or 2.75% week-on-week. Friday's early selloff, triggered by Houthi attacks on Saudi energy facilities, was partly reversed after reports of Gulf-Iran talks.

Daily moves were sharp, with the index losing 1,693 points on Monday and dipping as much as 2,145 points intraday on Tuesday before finishing 993 points lower. A 699 point fall on Wednesday preceded a 3,079 point drop on Thursday, the largest single-day decline of the week, which took the index to 168,865.

AHL data showed oil output rising 1.8% week-on-week to 68.4k barrels per day, while remittances grew 17% year-on-year to $3.7 billion in August. Petrol rose Rs21.8 per litre to Rs370.8 and high speed diesel climbed Rs23.72 per litre to Rs398.4 under the new daily pricing mechanism. Total liquid FX reserves increased 5.3% to $23.7 billion, and FY26 cement sector profits rose 13% to Rs138 billion.