KARACHI: The benchmark KSE 100-index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange lost over 1,000 points in early trade Friday, as political uncertainty triggered a bearish trend ahead of the much-anticipated Panama case verdict due today.

The index dipped by 1,132 points to hit 44,777 points as of 9:40 am, as the market witnessed a knee-jerk reaction before the Supreme Court of Pakistan announces a judgement that could topple Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who is embroiled in a long-running corruption case that has gripped the country.

The index had closed at 45,905 points on Thursday.

All eyes are on the Supreme Court as the five-member Panama case bench will announce its verdict at 11:30 am today.

PM in or out? Panama Papers case verdict to be announced today

The verdict is expected to be announced by the five-member bench which will commence proceedings at 11:30am

The court had, in April, declared there was "insufficient evidence" to oust PM Sharif over the graft allegations engulfing his family, and ordered a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to probe the matter.

The team of civilian and military investigators comprising the JIT found there was a "significant disparity" between the Sharif family´s income and lifestyle in its report submitted to the court earlier this month.

The Sharifs and their allies have consistently rejected the claims, with the ruling PML-N party this month dismissing the investigation team´s report as "trash".