Foreign selling, weak earnings push PSX down Ramadan session

Pakistan Stock Exchange – (Web Desk) – The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) dropped on Thursday as continued foreign selling and weak corporate earnings weighed on investor sentiment. Trading was slower than usual on the first day of Ramadan, following the sharp rebound in the previous session.

The benchmark KSE-100 Index swung between a high of 179,279.74 points, up 426.65 points (0.24%), and a low of 175,807.52 points, down 3,045.57 points (-1.7%), compared with the previous close of 178,853.09.

Mohammed Sohail, CEO of Topline Securities, pointed to “persistent foreign selling and disappointing corporate results” as key reasons behind the market’s weakness.

“Trading volumes are low today because it’s the first day of Ramadan and overall activity is limited. Yesterday’s sharp gains prompted some profit-taking, which may continue depending on the quality of upcoming earnings,” said AAH Soomro, an independent investment and economic analyst.

He added that recent Current Account data has temporarily halted the market’s correction phase.

Meanwhile, foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first seven months of FY26 (July–January) fell 41% year-on-year to $981.4 million, according to central bank data. Net FDI in January stood at $173 million, reversing a net outflow of $135 million in December, while cross-border investments dropped 25.5% compared to the same period last year.

China remained the largest investor, though net Chinese investment declined to $495.5 million from $857.1 million a year earlier.

Sector-wise, power inflows fell to $541.8 million from $890.3 million, while telecoms posted outflows of $442.7 million, as compared to $79.6 million outflows last year. Financial businesses attracted $460 million, up from $432.4 million.

In Wednesday’s market Treasury bills auction, the government raised Rs651 billion (realised value), with yields mixed, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

The one-month cut-off eased 5 bps to 10.1482%, while the three-month rose 9 bps to 10.2853%, the six-month increased 12 bps to 10.4437%, and the 12-month climbed 20 bps to 10.5996%.

The government raised Rs677 billion (face value) against a Rs450 billion target and Rs448 billion maturities, with participation of Rs1.265 trillion.

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Inflation, meanwhile, edged up to 5.8% in January from 5.6% a month earlier, while the SBP last month kept its benchmark policy rate unchanged at 10.5%.

The KSE-100 surged 5,702.68 points (3.29%) to 178,853.10 from 173,150.42, trading between 178,974.17 and 174,328.61 in the previous session on Wednesday.