KSE-100 sheds 553 points

Pakistan’s KSE-100 Index on Wednesday shed 553 points (1.11%) to close at 49,214 points, indicating an overall bearish day for investors.

Of the stocks that lost value today, Dar-es-Salaam tanked 9.80% to Rs. 9.02, Land Mark Spinning fell 9.28% to Rs. 8.60, and Grays Leasing declined 8.79% to Rs. 7.78. On the other hand, Pangrio Sugar gained 15.82% to Rs. 7.32, Mirza Sugar rose 14.71% to Rs. 7.80, and Dewan Sugar bumped up 12.11% to Rs. 9.26.

More than 156.6 million shares, worth approximately Rs. 11.1 billion, swapped hands during market hours today.

One of the major reasons driving the downward movement in the stock market is the liquidity crisis caused by the Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan's (SECP) order for Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) to fix the defaulting issue by selling off the brokers' holdings and paying off the investors’ dues.

In a press release issued on February 8, SECP chairman Zafar Hijazi said, "There is nothing dearer to my heart than investor protection, rest assured, we will take decisive action if PSX fails to shoulder its responsibility as the front-line regulator."