PSX Closing Bell: Blood and Thunder

April 07, 2025 (MLN): Panic gripped the trading floor of the Pakistan Stock Exchange following the international markets as screens turned red and sell orders piled up.

Right after opening, the bloodbath at the local bourse intensified as the benchmark KSE-100 nosedived by as much as 8,687 points or 7.31%, crashing to 110,103.97, marking the steepest intraday drop in PSX history.

During the session, the KSE-30 index dropped by 5% in intraday trade, triggering a market halt at 11:58 am. Trading resumed at 1:03 pm after the system-imposed cooldown, with all outstanding orders automatically cancelled during the break.

Though some ground was clawed back in the final hour, the damage was done that resulted in the index losing 3,882.18 points or 3.27% to close at  114,909.48. 

The index traded in a range of 7,497.65 points showing an intraday high of 117,601.62 (-1,190.04) and a low of 110,103.97 (-8,687.69) points.

The total volume of the KSE-100 Index was 389.42 million shares.

The root cause of the market rout was U.S. President Donald Trump's aggressive tariff policies, which have already sparked turbulence in global markets. 

Last week, the United States significantly raised tariffs on Pakistani exports, increasing rates from 4-5% to 29% under its reciprocal trade policy.

President Donald Trump announced the move as part of a broader strategy to address trade imbalances with multiple countries.

Under the new policy, Pakistan will now face a 29% tariff, mirroring its 58% tariff on US goods, as cited by the administration.

Experts are of the view that the textile exporters of Pakistan are likely to face direct headwinds due to higher tariffs, raising short-term concerns around profitability and export competitiveness.

However, views remain split on the broader economic impact. Some observers believe that Pakistan, being an import-heavy economy, could benefit from declining global commodity prices.

Cheaper imports may ease inflationary pressures, which in turn could create space for interest rate cuts. 

Of the 100 index companies 5 closed up, 93 closed down, while 2 were unchanged.

Top losers during the day were PSX (-8.44%), KTML (-7.74%), TRG (-7.68%), UNITY (-7.51%), and AVN (-6.96%).

On the other hand, top gainers were POML (+4.64%), TPLRF1 (+2.33%), TGL (+1.07%), SCBPL (+0.49%), and IBFL (+0.41%).

In terms of index-point contributions, companies that dragged the index lower were ENGROH (-322.49pts), OGDC (-290.34pts), PPL (-244.33pts), HUBC (-224.99pts), and PSO (-165.24pts).

Meanwhile, companies that added points to the index were TPLRF1 (+12.15pts), TGL (+4.43pts), SCBPL (+1.78pts), IBFL (+0.75pts), and POML (+0.61pts).

Sector-wise, KSE-100 Index was let down by Oil & Gas Exploration Companies (-781.16pts), Commercial Banks (-578.57pts), Inv. Banks / Inv. Cos. / Securities Cos. (-356.14pts), Fertilizer (-310.40pts), and Technology & Communication (-299.44pts).

While the index was supported by Synthetic & Rayon (+0.75pts), Vanaspati & Allied Industries (+0.61pts), Modarabas (+0.00pts), Woollen (-0.15pts), and Textile Weaving (-0.20pts).

In the broader market, the All-Share Index closed at 71,427.19 with a net loss of 2,444.29 points or 3.31%.

Total market volume was 710.79 million shares compared to 553.62m from the previous session, while traded value was recorded at Rs43.02 billion, showing an increase of Rs7.53bn.

There were 408,075 trades reported in 450 companies with 52 closing up, 357 closing down, and 41 remaining unchanged.

To note, the KSE-100 has gained 36,465 points or 46.48% during the fiscal year, whereas it has decreased 217 points or 0.19% so far this calendar year.

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