KARACHI: The PSX market fell further on Thursday as the KSE-100 Index lost 2,690.48 points, or 1.54%, to close at 171,739.44 amid oil-price and Red Sea concerns.
The benchmark initially rose 807.67 points to an intraday high of 175,237.59 before reversing direction. It later touched 171,655.09, down 2,774.83 points, and finished close to the session’s lowest level.
Independent investment and economic analysts attributed the pressure to repeated concerns about a Red Sea blockade and the persistent rise in international oil prices, which weakened investor sentiment.
Brent crude futures climbed more than 4% to above USD 98 per barrel after Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement claimed attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea. Saudi authorities and the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations confirmed an attack involving at least one vessel, with no casualties reported.
Read: KSE-100 Weekly Decline Hits 6,438 Points at PSX
The attacks heightened concern about disruption at Bab el-Mandeb, a major shipping route connecting the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, while tensions continued around the Strait of Hormuz.
The decline extended the PSX’s losses from Wednesday, when the KSE-100 Index dropped 1,703.64 points, or 0.97%, to close at 174,429.93.
