Pakistan Stock Exchange falls as IMF review and regional tensions weigh on investors

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) experienced a significant downturn on Thursday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index falling by over 1,700 points to close at 170,498.95 points, a decline of approximately 1.01 percent.

Investors showed caution due to the ongoing IMF review process and geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East. An IMF mission has begun discussions with Pakistani authorities regarding the fourth review under the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility and the Resilience and Sustainability Facility. Additionally, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently met with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva to discuss the nation's reform programme.

Selling pressure was widespread across multiple sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, and oil and gas exploration. While some refinery stocks saw progress through new upgrade agreements under the brownfield refinery policy, the broader market faced volatility. Market capitalization decreased to Rs18.971 trillion during the session.