Trading at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) opened under selling pressure on Friday, with the benchmark KSE 100 Index falling more than one percent during early trading.
According to sources, by 11:30 am, the benchmark index had dropped 2,067.01 points, or 1.1 percent, to reach 185,765.07 points. The PSX remained closed on Thursday due to the Kashmir Solidarity Day holiday. It is worth noting that on Wednesday, buying momentum continued for the fourth consecutive session, with the KSE 100 Index closing up by 931 points.
Meanwhile, global stock markets remained under pressure on Friday for the third consecutive day, as selling intensified on Wall Street, while precious metals and cryptocurrencies experienced sharp volatility. The broader MSCI Asia Pacific index, excluding Japan, recorded a one percent decline, marking losses for the second consecutive day. A major factor in the drop was a sharp five percent fall in South Korea’s KOSPI Index, which led to a temporary halt in trading shortly after the market opened. Meanwhile, S&P 500 E-mini futures fell 0.2 percent, and Nasdaq E-mini futures dropped 0.4 percent.
Concerns over the labor market also caused the S&P 500 Index to give up all gains for the year, moving into negative territory.
Precious metals attempted to recover from their lows but remained under pressure by the end of the day. Gold declined 0.1 percent to $4,764.43 per ounce, while silver experienced extreme volatility, falling as much as 10 percent before partially recovering to close down 1.4 percent at $70.26 per ounce.
