KARACHI - Out of 129 companies that were traded at Karachi Stock Exchange on Tuesday, the value of about 84 companies shares has declined to less than 10 rupees per share. A cursory glance over the current prices of 84 companies' shares shows that there are 43 companies whose shares value has fallen to less than three rupees per share during the prevailing crisis at stock market. On Tuesday, the shares of 128 companies were traded at KSE out of which the value of 18 companies shares increased, 110 companies declined while the price of the shares of three companies remained unchanged. The KSE-100 index lost another 307 points and closed at 8,510 points. At present the number of companies listed at KSE stands at 654 by December 15, 2008. However, the KSE has issued the data of only those companies that were traded on Tuesday. A pathetic aspect is that the KSE that was termed region's best stock market last year has now become a laughing stock in the world as the prices of the shares of most of the listed companies have tumbled to the bottom-line while the market capital of the KSE has squeezed from 70 billion dollars in April 2007 to about 32 billion dollars by mid-December 2008. According to details, the close-end mutual funds, modarabas, leasing companies, six investment banks/companies, two insurance companies, textile listed companies and the cement entities are the worst-hit by the crisis at the stock market. Sources in stock market said that the buyers and investors have sidelined from the market because of the ongoing crisis at the market, government's inability to arrange fund to support equities and political crisis. They said that the stock markets had been opened for normal trading this week after the imposition of floor for more than 100 days and the entire market was in the grip of uncertainty and lack of financial support. In April last year, the KSE set a record as its 100-index breached the highest benchmark, 15,400 points while the market capitalization swelled to over Rs 4.50 trillion (71.42 billion dollars when calculated at Rs 63 dollar-rupee exchange rate). It has been observed that the buyers were taking fresh positions in those shares only whose prices were less than three rupees and nobody was taking any interest in buying blue chips, a broker said. He said that the stock market is expected to remain under selling pressure for another couple of weeks because of the absence of the market players and the fund that was promised by the federal government to support the market.