PSX plunges 2,288 points on political noise

According to The Express Tribune, the KSE-100 index dropped 2,288 points, or 1.36 per cent, on Monday to close at 165,867.32 on the Pakistan Stock Exchange. The benchmark had finished the previous session at 168,155.49 and moved between 165,764.21 and 167,918.37 during the day. The paper linked the sell-off to political tension after negotiations between the government and the PTI ended without a deal.

The PTI kept its march towards Islamabad going, while the two sides stayed apart on counter-terrorism policy and on access to jailed former prime minister Imran Khan. Oil prices swung during the session, easing at first on hopes of more Middle Eastern supply before climbing again over concerns about regional energy supplies. Among the 499 companies trading in the ready market, 55 ended up, 409 declined and 35 were flat.

The heaviest drags included UBL (down 1.57 per cent), HBL (down 2.34 per cent) and Engro Holdings (down 1.77 per cent), whereas Pakistan Oilfields, Tariq Glass and Highnoon Laboratories posted gains of 1.16, 0.81 and 0.23 per cent respectively. Volume shrank to 441.9 million shares from 494 million the session before, while foreign investors sold Rs45 million worth of shares, according to the National Clearing Company.