Weekly Market Roundup

October 17, 2026 (MLN): The benchmark KSE-100 Index closed the week ended October 16, 2026, at 166,419.72 points, losing 669.56 points, or 0.40% week-on-week, from 167,089.28 points recorded on October 9, 2026.

The market remained under pressure during the week as concerns over potential shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz following attacks on vessels in the strategic waterway weighed on investor sentiment, raising uncertainty over regional stability and market conditions.

Market Capitalization

The Pakistan Stock Exchange's market capitalization declined to Rs4.680 trillion during the week, compared with Rs4.717tr on October 9, 2026, registering a decrease of approximately Rs36.93bn, or 0.78% week-on-week.

In dollar terms, market capitalization fell from $17.028bn to $16.901bn, declining by approximately $127.69m, or 0.75% WoW.

The market's USD-adjusted return stood at -0.37%, compared with -0.61% in the previous week, indicating a smaller decline after accounting for currency movements.

On the macroeconomic front, Pakistan’s current account deficit widened to $356m in September, taking the first-quarter FY27 shortfall to $874m, up 15.8% year-on-year, as imports outpaced exports despite stronger workers’ remittances and secondary income inflows.

Pakistan’s large-scale manufacturing output fell 4.96% month-on-month in August 2026, despite rising 0.67% year-on-year, while cumulative output grew 1.85% in July-August FY27, driven by automobiles, garments and petroleum products amid declines in food, chemicals and pharmaceuticals.

The State Bank of Pakistan raised Rs685.53bn through the latest Treasury Bills auction against bids of Rs2.64tr, with the 6-month tenor attracting the highest competitive acceptance at Rs224.20bn as cut-off yields moved in mixed directions across all four tenors.

Pakistan’s foreign currency deposits rose 0.45% month-on-month to $6.97bn in September 2026, up from $6.94bn in August, but declined 1.27% year-on-year, as higher resident deposits offset a monthly decline in non-resident holdings.

Pakistan’s passenger car sales fell 9.8% year-on-year to 10,939 units in September 2026, marking a second consecutive monthly decline with sales down 20.3% month-on-month, despite a 42.8% increase in cumulative sales to 41,872 units during 3MFY27.

Index Movers

Sector-wise performance remained broadly negative, with Oil & Gas Exploration Companies emerging as the largest drag on the KSE-100 Index, shedding 329.78 points, followed by Commercial Banks at 319.41 points,

Cement at 135.70 points, Investment Banks / Investment Companies / Securities Companies at 109.13 points, and Power Generation & Distribution at 75.64 points.

Other major negative contributors included Chemical at 27.73 points, Property at 22.54 points, Leather & Tanneries at 18.29 points, Technology & Communication at 16.33 points, and Automobile Assembler at 13.39 points.

On the upside, Fertilizer provided the largest sectoral support, adding 170.58 points, followed by Oil & Gas Marketing Companies at 63.18 points, Refinery at 60.13 points, Pharmaceuticals at 40.80 points, and Food & Personal Care Products at 22.22 points.

Among individual stocks, FFC emerged as the largest positive contributor to the index, adding 84.70 points, followed by SYS at 80.73 points, PSO at 61.60 points, EFERT at 59.83 points, and ATRL at 44.02 points.

On the downside, OGDC was the largest drag on the benchmark, erasing 160.99 points, followed by UBL at 136.42 points, HBL at 111.35 points, PTC at 110.50 points, and POL at 94.65 points.

FIPI/LIPI

Foreign investors recorded net equity sales of Rs1.52bn ($5.49m) during the week, primarily driven by net selling of Rs1.68bn ($6.06m) by Foreign Corporates.

Overseas Pakistanis recorded net equity purchases of Rs165.17m ($596,287), while Foreign Individuals posted net sales of Rs7.81m ($28,194). Including debt flows, foreign investors recorded net sales of Rs1.52bn ($5.49m).

On the local side, investors recorded net equity purchases of Rs1.52bn ($5.49m), broadly offsetting foreign equity outflows.

Banks/DFIs were the largest net equity buyers at Rs2.31bn ($8.33m), followed by Companies at Rs1.86bn ($6.72m) and Individuals at Rs974.47m ($3.52m).

Meanwhile, Mutual Funds recorded the largest net equity sales at Rs2.96bn ($10.69m), followed by Insurance Companies at Rs460.31m ($1.66m) and Broker Proprietary Trading at Rs205.62m ($742,319).

In the debt market, Banks/DFIs recorded net purchases of Rs21.55bn ($77.81m), while Mutual Funds recorded net sales of Rs13.05bn ($47.12m) and Insurance Companies posted net sales of Rs9.06bn ($32.72m).

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