KARACHI: After robust performances in the last five months, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) turned bearish in the first month of 2025 due to uncertain global and internal political scenarios after the execution of Donald Trump’s America First Policy, which includes boosting the US manufacturing sector by imposing import tariffs on its major trade partners.

The Trump administration has imposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, effective Feb 1, which may trigger a trade war, disturbing the global trade balance and causing a fallout.

However, the Pakistani shares remained depressed in the last two weeks of January, pushing the Pakistan Stock Exchange into the red zone as nervous investors continued offloading their holdings in the backdrop of the uncertain economic and political situation, which was well reflected in missing tax collection projections, falling foreign exchange reserves, weaker rupee and contraction of large-scale manufacturing despite massive rate cuts in the last seven months, bringing the State Bank of Pakistan’s policy rate to 12pc from an unprecedented level of 22pc in June 2024 in six intervals.

Also, the inconclusive talks between the government and the PTI to........

© Dawn Business