KARACHI, March 18: The KSE 100-share index on Tuesday virtually crashed from the recent highs by 317 points or 2.11 per cent on panic selling triggered by a massive plunge on the world and regional markets, US discount rate cut and fears of standoff between the local contenders of power.

Analysts said it was not a single negative factor but a combination of both local and foreign ones fuelled by an alarming US recession and its likely adverse impact on the world economies, including Pakistan.

It was also a belated reaction to Bear Stearns credit crunch followed by its sell-off at a lower price of $2 per share, which drove the market below its technical mandate or inherent strength, they added.

The index at one stage was off by a massive 530 points from the overnight close of over 15,000 points at 14,513.01 and signaled that there could be a violent end if the rescue operation was not launched in a falling market, they said. The free-float 30-share index was down by 531.96 points or about three per cent at 17,894.67.

However, the mid-session short-covering by leading investors on selected counters allowed it to finish partially recovered from the initial lows at 14,726.54 after having broken about half a dozen consecutive barriers on panic selling in the leading base shares eroding Rs101 billion from the market capital at Rs4,511bn. But it was not a largest single session decline as it had fallen more than 600 points early this year.

What seems to have hastened the market fall was reported US fund selling owing to not encouraging news from their financial systems and the local investors followed them in a big way.

The US investors may not have a major stake in the local bourse as they did in Mumbai stocks but no one could stop psychological sell-off in a falling market, some brokers said.

The panic selling may have political backing also for obvious reasons put in action in an uncertain condition but that may be a bad idea to rely upon, they said.

“I was expecting the revival of institutional support at the dips as a rescue operation customary in the similar situations,” a leading analyst Ashraf Zakaria said “but there was an intriguing quiet on that front may be because of political compulsions.”

Despite oath-taking of the elected members of the new assembly, nomination of speaker and deputy speaker, conflicting news about the prime minister continues to have its toll in the form of uncertainty, another analyst Hasnain Asghar Ali said.

Leading shares received a massive battering at the higher levels and fell sharply lower under the lead of EFU General and EFU Life, off by Rs41.15 and Rs38.25, respectively, followed by Arif Habib Ltd, Habib Bank, Adamjee Insurance, Pakistan Resource Co, Sapphire Fibres, Attock Refinery, PSO, Shell Gas, Pakistan Engineering, Engro Chemical, Packages, AKD Capital and JS & Co and JS Global, which suffered fall ranging from Rs10.60 to Rs37.10.

Gainers were led by Eye TV, Balochistan Wheels, Mitchell’s Farms, IGI Insurance, Island Textiles, Dawood Hercules, and Fazal Textiles, which were quoted higher by Rs2.50 to Rs11.

Traded volume rose to 241m shares from the previous 155m shares but losers held a strong lead over the gainers at 276 to 55, with 55 shares holding on to the last levels.

Lucky Cement topped the list of actives, modestly higher by 45 paisa at Rs135.15 0n 27m shares followed by D.G. Khan Cement, off by Rs.2.15 at Rs105.75 on 16m shares, OGDC, easy by Rs1.10 at Rs132 on 12m shares, Pakistan Oilfields, sharply lower by Rs6.15 at Rs351.80 also on 12m shares, Arif Habib Securities, off Rs6.50 at Rs163.50 on 10m shares, Fauji Fertiliser Bin Qasim, off Rs1.15 at Rs44.50 on 9m shares and Pakistan Cement, lower 35 paisa at Rs10.65 on 7m shares.

Other actives were led by Bosicor Pakistan, easy by 50 paisa at Rs18.70 on 6m shares, NIB Bank, lower 80 paisa at Rs18.95 also on 6m shares and TRG Pakistan, easy by 15 paisa at Rs11.40 on 6m shares.

FORWARD COUNTER: Lucky Cement came in for modest support on the clear list and was marked up by 60 paisa at Rs135.75 on 12m shares followed by MCB Bank, sharply lower by Rs12.80 at Rs379 on 8m shares and D.G. Khan Cement, off Rs2.20 at Rs106.30 also on 8m shares.