PSX falls 825 points as US-Iran uncertainty, oil pressure weigh

Pakistan's stock market slid on Tuesday, with the KSE-100 closing 825.22 points lower, or 0.48 per cent, at 169,600.40, according to The Express Tribune. The decline came after an early rally of 324.35 points faded, as worries about Middle East tensions and costly oil weighed on sentiment. Gains in automobile assemblers, cement, banks, fertiliser and oil firms during the morning could not offset broad selling later in the day.

Negotiations involving the US and Iran failed to produce any progress, while oil prices stayed high as the conflict clouded Middle Eastern supply prospects. Pakistan and the IMF have opened formal talks on a fourth review of the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility, alongside a further assessment under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb led the initial round with an IMF delegation visiting the country, a setting shaped by the regional conflict and higher energy costs.

Trading activity picked up, with volume climbing to 568 million shares from 421 million on Monday, and the value of shares traded reached Rs20.8 billion. Of the 496 companies active in the ready market, 154 finished higher, 305 lower and 37 unchanged. Cnergyico PK topped the volume table with 56.6 million shares traded, but its price slipped Rs0.23 to Rs13.09.