Record run continues as KSE-100 surges past 109,000 after 815-point gain

Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) continued its record-breaking trend, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index closing above 109,000 for the first time in history after a gain of 815 points on Friday.

A combination of positive economic indicators and investor optimism has lifted the KSE-100 to record highs.

On Friday, the KSE-100 started the session positive, hitting an intra-day high of 109,478.09 in the first half, followed by brief selling that pushed the index back to below 109,000 level.

However, as the day progressed, the index surpassed it again to close at another fresh record high.

At close, the benchmark index settled at 109,053.95, up by 814.98 points or 0.75%.

Buying was observed in key sectors including automobile assemblers, commercial banks, fertiliser, OMCs, and oil and gas exploration companies. Index-heavy stocks including PPL, MARI, SSGC, SNGP, MCB, NBP, UBL and DFML traded in the green.

The positive trend is fuelled by heightened investor confidence and robust market sentiment surrounding expectations of a substantial rate cut in the upcoming monetary policy meeting, scheduled for December 16, 2024.

On Thursday, the bull run continued as the KSE-100 hit a record high with impressive gains on the back of interest of local investors coupled with institutional support. The index surged by 3,134.63 points or 2.98% to close at its then highest level of 108,238.97.

In a key development, Saudi Arabia extended the term of its $3 billion deposits with Pakistan for an additional year to further support Pakistan’s economy.

The deposits placed with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) matured on Thursday, however, at the federal government’s request, Saudi Arabia announced the extension of its term for another year.

On a weekly basis, the KSE-100 gained 7.6% amid continuous buying by mutual funds on account of more allocation towards equity on the backdrop of declining yields on fixed income securities, as inflation number continue to decline, brokerage house Topline Securities said in a report.

Globally, Asian stocks slipped on Friday on political ructions in South Korea, while US dollar bulls waited anxiously to see if US payrolls challenged or cemented expectations of a rate cut this month.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.3% in part due to a 1.7% drop in South Korea’s KOSPI.

South Korea’s main opposition Democratic Party said on Friday lawmakers were on standby after receiving many reports of another martial law declaration, the Yonhap news agency reported on Friday. In other places, China’s blue chips rose 0.2% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.4%.

Meanwhile, the Pakistani rupee recorded a marginal decline against the US dollar, depreciating 0.03% in the inter-bank market on Friday. At close, the currency settled at 278.01, a loss of Re0.07 against the greenback.

Volume on the all-share index increased to 1,697.84 million from 1,647.13 million on Thursday.

However, the value of shares decreased to Rs57.49 billion from Rs63.23 billion in the previous session.

WorldCall Telecom was the volume leader with 368.90 million shares, followed by B.O.Punjab with 115.55 million shares, and Cnergyico PK with 93.62 million shares.

Shares of 233 companies were traded on Friday, of which 233 registered an increase, 200 recorded a fall, while 35 remained unchanged.