Pakistan Stock Exchange plunges 3500 points due to increasing risk of showdown with India
Islamabad, Apr 30 (PTI): The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) plunged by more than 3,500 points on Wednesday as uncertainty took hold due to increasing risk of a showdown with India.
Information Minister Atta Tarar said that India was planning military action against Pakistan in 26 to 36 hours, spreading panic in the market.
The market maintained a downward trend throughout the day and finally the index closed at 111,326.57, down by 3,545.61 or 3.09 per cent, from the last close of 114,872.18, according to the data provided by the PSX.
Analysts attributed the plunge to the uncertain security situation after the Pahalgam terrorist attack of April 22 that killed at least 26 people.
The Dawn newspaper reported that Mohammed Sohail, chief executive of Topline Securities, attributed the decline to “news of a likely attack in the next few days”.
Awais Ashraf, director research at AKD Securities, said, “Investors are worried about potential Indian military action against Pakistan, concerns that have intensified following the information minister’s press briefing.”
Yousuf M Farooq, director of research at Chase Securities, echoed the same sentiments. He said that the market was under pressure following the information minister’s “statement last night suggesting that India may take military action within the next 24–36 hours”.
“The market in the short term will most likely follow news flows of Pakistan-India tensions,” he added.
Sana Tawfik, head of research at Arif Habib Limited, also credited the slump primarily on geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan.
Earlier in the day, Information Minister Tarar said that “credible intelligence” reports indicated that India was planning to conduct military action in the next 24 to 36 hours.
His statement came after India gave its military “operational freedom” to respond to the Pahalgam attack.
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Mangaluru: Bajpe police arrests young man for alleged derogatory posts against police
Bajpe: Police have arrested a youth for allegedly posting derogatory and defamatory content against the Bajpe police on social media.
The arrested accused has been identified as Abhishek M. (23), a resident of Katipalla, Surathkal.
According to the police, Abhishek posted a photograph of Bajpe Nisarga Hotel on his Instagram account mr_a_titude_22, alleging that accused persons in a murder case under the jurisdiction of the Bajpe police station were being treated “like royalty” by the police and were being served beef meals from the hotel every day. In his post, he further accused the police of colluding with criminals and misusing their authority, stating that public trust in the police was being betrayed.
Following which, the Bajpe police registered a case and arrested the accused.
Police records reveal that Abhishek is already facing multiple criminal cases. A case of murder, attempt to murder, assault and robbery has been registered against him at the Surathkal police station. At the same time, a robbery case has also been registered at the Kaup police station.
After his arrest, Abhishek was handed over to the custody of the CEN police for further investigation. He was later produced before a court, police said.
