PSX: Buying continues, KSE-100 up over 200 points

Buying interest was observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining over 200 points during the opening minutes of trading. At 10am, the benchmark index was hovering at 171, 103. 30, up 218. 72 points or 0. 13%. Buying was observed in key sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs and refineries. Index-heavy stocks, including HUBCO, MARI, OGDC, PPL, POL, PSO, SSGC, NBP and UBL, traded in the green. Last week, the PSX saw pronounced volatility, with the benchmark index trading within a narrow range despite substantial swings in investor sentiment. Persistent geopolitical friction between the United States and Iran, renewed concerns over regional energy supplies, and a sharp rise in international and domestic oil prices kept investors cautious, limiting equity upside as the benchmark KSE-100 Index edged up only 372. 73 points, or 0. 22% week-on-week, to 170, 884. 59 points. Internationally, share markets edged higher in Asia on Monday as AI’s insatiable demand for data buoyed chipmakers, and oil eased on reports that more oil was finding its way ​out of the Middle East than previously thought, despite the ongoing conflict in the Gulf. Japan’s Nikkei was shut, but futures rose 0. 5%, while South Korea’s tech-heavy index gained 1. 5%. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares ​outside Japan rose 0. 8%, and Chinese blue chips gained 0. 6%. S&P 500 futures firmed 0. 4%, while Nasdaq futures added 0. 6%. In Europe, EUROSTOXX 50 futures and DAX ​futures both rose 0. 4%, while FTSE futures firmed 0. 2%. Bond markets remained tense after a vicious selloff saw US 2-year yields jump 36 ⁠basis points in the past two weeks to heights not seen since mid-2024 at 4. 7604%. Hawkish guidance from the Federal Reserve last week has futures wagering on a 56% chance ​it will hike rates again in October, with a move by year-end considered a done deal. This is an intraday update

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