Pakistan stocks decline amid institutional profit-taking

Pakistan stocks closed negative on Wednesday as investors opted to profit-booking in a volatile session.

Pakistan's stock market began the day on a high note as investor enthusiasm surged following the Prime Minister's visit to the Pakistan Stock Exchange.

However, the initial positive sentiment gave way to profit-booking in the latter half of the trading session, leading to a volatile day.

By the close, the market had ended on a negative note, marked by a dramatic intraday swing of over 3,900 points. The index faced significant pressure in the second half of the session, reflecting the heightened volatility.

Trading volumes were noticeably lower compared to recent sessions, indicating a more cautious approach by investors amidst the market fluctuations.

KSE-100 index shed 1.64% or 1,904.23 points to close at 114,148.46 points.

The Indian stock market continued to drop on Wednesday due to weak global trends, causing concerns that the previous day's gains wouldn't last.

The overall market mood remains delicate with many challenges. Global weakness affected the domestic market.

Overnight, Wall Street ended lower, leading to a drop in major Asian markets on Wednesday because of a stronger US dollar and rising bond yields.

BSE-100 index lost 0.27% or 67.57 points to close at 24,995.97 points.

DFM General Index shed 0.09% or 4.6 points to close at 5,209.33 points.

Commodities

Oil prices went up on Wednesday because Russia and OPEC countries reduced their supply, and U.S. oil stocks decreased last week, according to market sources.

Another reason for the price increase was more job openings in the U.S., which suggests the economy is growing and boosting oil demand.

Brent crude prices gained 0.05% to $77.09 per barrel.

The gold price didn't change much on Wednesday. This is because people are unsure about US President-elect Donald Trump's plans for tariffs, the possibility of a trade war, political tensions around the world, and a generally cautious market outlook.

These factors are making gold a popular safe investment.

International gold prices decreased 0.08% reaching $2,648.88 per ounce.

Currency

US dollar remained steady against PKR in the inter-bank market. Pakistani currency remained flat at 278.72. In the open market USD was trading at PKR 279.