Pakistan stocks drop on profit taking as budget delayed

Pakistan’s stock market closed lower Monday as investors opted for profit-taking amid uncertainty over the federal budget and International Monetary Fund (IMF) conditions, analysts said.

"The bearish trend was primarily driven by concerns over the delay in the federal budget announcement and the lack of clarity regarding the IMF conditions tied to it," said an analyst at Topline Securities.

"In the absence of positive triggers, investors chose to trim their positions and adopt a cautious stance."

The benchmark KSE-100 index ended the day in negative territory, with market sentiment remaining subdued as traders awaited fresh cues, according to an analyst at Ismail Iqbal Securities.

Commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, and oil and gas marketing firms were the biggest losers, collectively dragging the index down by 495 points.

Energy stocks also faced pressure amid rumors of a potential delay in resolving circular debt. However, K-Electric Ltd. (KEL) bucked the trend, leading the volume chart and closing at its upper circuit after securing a dollar-linked tariff for its transmission and distribution business.

KSE-100 index shed 0.74% or 881.55 points to close at 118,221.12 points.

Currency

US dollar gained against PKR in the inter-bank market. Pakistani currency shed 09 paisas to close at 282.06. In the open market USD was trading at PKR 284.15.

Indian Stocks

On Monday, the Indian stock market ended on a positive note as investors bought stocks across different industries, especially in the automobile and IT sectors. The main stock indexes started the week strong, continuing their upward trend for the second day in a row.

Experts believe that the market gained momentum because the US might delay imposing high tariffs on the EU and the dollar index has gone down, helping boost investor confidence.

BSE-100 index gained 0.55% or 143.45 points to close at 26,172.38 points.

DFM General Index gained 0.37% or 20.13 points to close at 5,484.29 points.

Crude Oil

Oil prices kept changing on Monday. At first, crude oil prices went up because President Trump decided to delay the deadline for a trade deal with the European Union until early July.

Later, prices fell as OPEC+ is expected to announce a larger-than-planned increase in oil production at its next meeting on July 9-10.

Brent crude prices decreased by 0.29% to $64.59 per barrel.

Gold Prices

Gold prices dropped on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump gave the European Union until July 9 to finalize a trade deal. Earlier, he had warned of a 50% tariff starting June 1 but later changed his decision.

On Sunday, Trump agreed to extend the deadline after an EU official said more time was needed to negotiate a fair agreement.

International gold prices decreased 0.81% to close at $ 3,331.51 per ounce. In the local market, gold prices decreased PKR 2,600 to 351,500 per tola.