Pakistani shares, rupee fall

Karachi: Pakistani shares fell 4 per cent on Monday to end at their lowest in two-and-a-half years after a four-month floor on its main index was removed, sending the rupee to a 4-week low on capital outflow concern.

Equity trading dried up after authorities imposed a floor of 9,144 points in late August to curb more falls after the index fell nearly 35 per cent on the year, in a market battered by political and economic uncertainty.

The curbs blocked investors from exiting the market and brokerages cut jobs in dwindling volume, with JP Morgan suspending its equities operations in Pakistan in late November.

The Karachi Stock Exchange's benchmark 100-share index ended down 4 per cent, or 370 points, at 8,817.10, its lowest level since June 2006.

Only a handful of stocks were traded, masking sharp losses expected when more stocks begin to trade.

"There are no buyers in the market right now," said Shuja Rizvi, director broking operations at Capital One Equities.

"There are sell orders at shares' lower locks but no one is buying."