Pakistan’s benchmark KSE-100 index fell sharply during intraday trading on Thursday, reflecting growing market pressure. At 2:25pm PST, the index stood at 182,248.85 points, down 6,131.53 points, or 3.25 percent, from the previous close of 188,380.38. Trading volume reached 284.25 million shares with a total value of Rs34.56 billion.
Stocks across multiple sectors dropped, including commercial banks, fertilizer, automobile assemblers, mutual funds, leather, oil and gas, synthetic and rayon companies. Tobacco, transportation, vanaspati, and woolen industries also traded in the red. Kohinoor Power Company Limited fell to Rs44.60, Kohinoor Industries Limited dropped to Rs63.06, and Faisal Spinning Mills Limited declined to Rs36.19.
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Analysts linked the sharp decline to rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Reuters reported that oil prices rose 1.5 percent today, extending gains for a third day. Concerns over a potential U.S. military attack on Iran are adding pressure on global markets and Pakistan’s equities.
Investors reacted cautiously to the volatility, selling off shares across defensive and cyclical sectors. The sudden drop erased several weeks of gains and highlighted the sensitivity of Pakistan’s market to external geopolitical events.
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Market experts warned that continued uncertainty could keep indices under pressure in the coming days. They advised monitoring international developments closely, particularly oil prices and regional political risks, before making large-scale investments.