Stocks lose 718 points on budget uncertainty

The Pakis­tan Stock Exchange (PSX) faltered on Tuesday on economic concerns after the International Mone­tary Fund (IMF) attached new performance benchmarks to the current $7bn Extended Fund Facility, which dented bullish sentiments and bears dragged the benchmark KSE 100 index below 119,000-barrier on nervous selling by jittery investors. Topline Securities Ltd said the stock market remained volatile, reflecting a day of consolidation. The benchmark index recorded an intraday high of 211 points and a low of 1,163 points, eventually closing at 118,971.13, down 718.50 points or 0.60 per cent day-on-day. The decline was attributed to persistent profit-taking compounded by the absence of any positive triggers. Key heavyweights, including Fauji Fertiliser Company, United Bank Ltd, Habib Bank Ltd, Pakistan Petroleum Ltd, and Engro Holdings, collectively contributed to a 386-point decline in the index.