PSX: Selling returns, KSE-100 sheds over 1,100 points

Business Recorder reported that selling returned to the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Thursday, with the KSE-100 index losing more than 1,100 points in intraday trade. At 1:50pm the index stood at 171,068.32, a fall of 1,164.19 points or 0.68%, having closed 830.43 points higher on Wednesday at 172,232.51. Heavy selling hit automobile assemblers, cement makers, commercial banks and oil and gas firms. Several index heavyweights, including LUCK, HBL and SSGC, also traded lower.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on the margins of the UN General Assembly 2026. The meeting coincided with the start of IMF mission talks with Pakistani officials on the next review of a $7-billion Extended Fund Facility and the Resilience and Sustainability Facility. According to the prime minister's office, Shehbaz thanked the fund for its ongoing backing and pledged to keep carrying out the IMF-supported reform agenda. Georgieva said on X that steady implementation had helped preserve stability and rebuild confidence.

Abroad, bond markets came under pressure as Japanese government bonds fell with Treasuries, pushing the 10-year Japanese yield to a 30-year peak. Oil prices backed off recent peaks, and the dollar kept its gains after Tehran's leader vowed never to surrender, following a warning from US President Donald Trump. Asian equities were mixed, with the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index down 0.64% and Japan's Nikkei 225 up 1.73%.