Pakistan’s benchmark index, KSE-100, crashed over 15,000 points shortly after market open on Monday, causing trading to be halted temporarily.
When trading resumed around 10.30am, the index was down 12,334.88 points from its previous close of 168,062.16 points, marking a fall of 7.34 per cent.
By 11:07am, the market recovered slightly, with the index down 9,164.62 points, marking a fall of 5.45pc.
The sharp plunge comes as regional geopolitical tensions spiked over the weekend as the United States and Israel on Saturday launched what they described as a “pre-emptive” joint strike against Iranian targets, with US President Donald Trump announcing the start of “major combat operations”.
The tensions caused Brent to jump 6.4pc to $77.57 a barrel by early Monday, though it had briefly topped $82.00 at one stage, while US crude climbed 6.2pc to $71.17 per barrel.
Safe-haven gold rose 1.6pc to $5,360 an ounce
