Pakistan stocks plummet amid institutional selling

Pakistan stocks endured a turbulent session on Thursday as persistent negative sentiment, spurred by continuous institutional selling over the past week, severely dented investor confidence.

Stocks closed sharply lower amid concerns over prospects of foreign debt repayments and the upcoming EU review on GSP status.

Engro Holdings, Fauji Fertilizer, Mari Petroleum, Systems Limited, and Pakistan Petroleum (PPL) were the major contributors to the decline, collectively accounting for 675 points of the loss.

The benchmark KSE-100 index shed 1.46% or 1,634.22 points to close at 110,301.16 points.

Separately, the Indian stock market continued to fall for the second day in a row on Thursday, before the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) policy decision on Friday.

Positive global signals and lower US bond yields helped reduce the losses. Since the government already cut taxes to boost spending, the RBI's decision on whether to cut interest rates will be important for future growth.

The BSE-100 index shed 0.49% or 120.97 points to close at 24,741.99 points.

Meanwhile, the DFM General Index gained 0.5% or 25.9 points to close at 5,244.83 points.

Commodities

Oil prices rose on Thursday after Saudi Arabia increased March prices. They had fallen more than 2% on Wednesday due to negative perceptions of US President Trump's trade policies.

Crude prices have dropped 10% since their January 15 peak, with analysts predicting continued volatility due to uncertainty about Trump's energy policies.

Brent crude prices surged 0.75% to $75.17 per barrel.

Gold prices dropped on Thursday due to changing global market conditions that have affected its value in different regions.

International gold prices decreased 0.14% reaching $2,865.92 per ounce.

Currency

US dollar steadied against PKR in the inter-bank market. Pakistani currency lost 19 paisas to close at 279.14. In the open market USD was trading at PKR 281.