Pakistan stock exchange surges with optimism, KSE-100 index hits record high

Karachi, November 19, 2024— The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) opened on a positive note on Tuesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index rising by 844.22 points, or 0.89%, during intra-day trading. At 12:20 pm, the index stood at 95,839.89 points, up from the previous day’s close of 94,995.67 points.

The trading session showed moderate optimism as investors reacted to a favourable economic outlook, with 66,436,230 shares changing hands and a total market value of Rs 4.00 billion recorded. The positive movement in the market follows a strong performance on Monday, when the KSE-100 index hit an all-time high of 94,996 points.

The rally was driven by a combination of factors, including a surplus in Pakistan’s current account for October, which posted a surplus of $349 million compared to a deficit of $287 million in the same month last year. The news spurred investor confidence as it signalled improvement in the country’s financial stability.

Analysts also attributed the surge to the government’s ongoing reforms in state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and its successful negotiations with independent power producers (IPPs). These measures were seen as steps toward fiscal consolidation, and the positive sentiment was further boosted by the finance minister’s decision to rule out a mini-budget and the government’s productive talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“Stocks closed at a new all-time high on reports of the current account surplus of $349 million in October,” said Ahsan Mehanti, Managing Director of Arif Habib Corp. Investors were also buoyed by surging foreign exchange reserves and the government’s strategic moves to stabilise key sectors.

As the market continued to react to the favourable economic indicators, Arif Habib Limited (AHL) highlighted that the KSE-100 index closed above the 95,000 mark for the first time during the opening session of the week, reflecting the positive sentiment prevailing in the market.