KARACHI (Oct 13) – The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) plunged on Monday as investors reacted sharply to escalating tensions following military action in Afghanistan and nationwide protests by an extremist religious group.
The benchmark KSE-100 index dropped nearly 3,000 points at the opening bell, sliding from 163,000 to 160,126, with the downward momentum continuing into the afternoon session.
Market analysts said the sell-off reflected a combination of geopolitical anxiety, domestic instability, and economic uncertainty, which have dented investor confidence in recent days.
“Market sentiment has been weak since last week due to political turmoil and the IMF delegation’s abrupt return from Pakistan,” said Intikhab Ali, a financial analyst at Capital Investments. “The Afghanistan situation and violent protests have only accelerated the decline.”
Over the weekend, Pakistan witnessed violent clashes between security forces and Tehrik-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) supporters during anti-Israel demonstrations, which left at least five people dead. Simultaneously, cross-border military activity in Afghanistan has raised fears of regional instability spilling into Pakistan’s frontier areas.
Traders said institutional investors and foreign funds offloaded shares amid fears of a prolonged political and security crisis. The rupee also weakened slightly against the US dollar in interbank trading, compounding the negative sentiment.
Despite the sell-off, analysts noted that fundamentally strong stocks in sectors such as banking, cement, and energy could attract bargain hunters once the situation stabilizes.