Rising crude oil prices and fading hopes of a near-term US-Iran agreement trigger broad-based selling at PSX.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) came under renewed selling pressure on Tuesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index extending its decline as heightened geopolitical uncertainty and profit-taking weighed on investor sentiment.

The benchmark index closed at 179,846 points, down 1,463 points, or 0.81%, from the previous session. The index initially climbed to an intraday high of 181,017 points but failed to sustain its gains, eventually falling to a low of 179,778 points.

The market traded within a volatile range of approximately 1,238 points as investors remained cautious amid rising international crude oil prices and diminishing expectations of a near-term agreement between the United States and Iran.

The renewed increase in oil prices raised concerns over Pakistan’s external account and inflation outlook, prompting investors to adopt a risk-averse approach. Profit-taking across major index-heavy sectors further intensified the selling pressure during the session.

On the index contribution front, FFC, LUCK, ENGROH, UBL and BAHL emerged as the largest drags on the benchmark. The five stocks collectively eroded approximately 778 points from the KSE-100 Index.

Despite the broad-based decline, market participation remained active. Total traded volume reached approximately 860 million shares, while the total traded value stood at around PKR 38.8 billion.

The latest decline reflects continued sensitivity of the local equity market to developments in the Middle East, particularly movements in international oil prices and the outlook for US-Iran relations.

Investors are likely to closely monitor geopolitical developments, crude oil prices and domestic economic indicators in the coming sessions as uncertainty continues to influence market direction.