KARACHI: Pakistan’s stocks and currency markets tumbled on Monday as investors reacted to the United States’ (US) foray into the Israel-Iran conflict, traders and analysts said.
The benchmark KSE-100 index dropped more than 3 percent to 116,167 points, the lowest in more than six weeks, while the rupee continued to weaken against the US dollar in the seventh consecutive session on Monday.
The index has plunged by nearly 5 percent since June 13 when Israel first hit Iranian military and nuclear targets in Natanz, Isfahan and Fordow, killing top generals and scientists among 78 people.
“Rising geopolitical tensions following a US strike on Iran shook investor confidence, causing the KSE-100 Index to drop by 3.2 percent,” Mohammad Waqas Ghani, head of research at JS Global Capital Ltd., told Arab News, adding that this was the fourth largest single-day decline in terms of points historically.
The attacks on Iran by the US, which followed Israeli strikes, have intensified the war and deepened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, sending jitters to markets across the globe.
