The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a choppy trading session on Wednesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index swinging between gains and losses before settling lower by midday as investors appeared to lock in profits following the previous session’s recovery.
After the opening bell, selling pressure dominated the market, dragging the KSE-100 Index down by more than 1,000 points in early trade. Around 9:34am, the benchmark index touched an intraday low of 169,932 points, shedding 1,089.77 points from the previous close.
The market later staged a strong rebound as buyers returned to selected stocks. By 10:52am, the index had climbed to an intraday high of 171,624.45 points, gaining 602.68 points, while trading activity picked up significantly.
However, the recovery proved short-lived. Fresh selling emerged during the late morning session, pushing the benchmark back into negative territory.
As of 12:04pm, the KSE-100 Index stood at 170,700.22 points, down 321.55 points, or 0.19 percent, from Tuesday’s close. Trading volume had reached more than 74.17 million shares by that time.
The market remained within a broad intraday range of 169,932.00 to 171,624.45 points, highlighting continued volatility as investors weighed profit-taking against selective buying interest.
Among the most actively traded stocks, Pakistan Qatar Family Takaful, Dewan Cement, Secure Logistics Group, OBOY and Treet Battery Limited attracted strong investor attention. WorldCall Services emerged as one of the session’s strongest performers, posting a gain of more than 20 percent. Other notable gainers included GSPM, Service Industries Modaraba, Deluxe Footwear and Pak Datacom.
On the losing side, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Oil and Gas Company led the decliners, falling 10 percent. Other stocks under pressure included TSMF, Askari General Insurance, Crescent Cotton Mills and Power Cement preference shares.
The mixed performance comes a day after the KSE-100 Index closed 421.57 points higher at 171,021.77 points, supported by gains in banking, fertiliser and energy stocks. Despite Wednesday’s decline, the benchmark index remains up 41.72 percent over the past year, though it is still down 1.93 percent since the start of 2026.
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