KSE-100 Index gains 575 points as buying returns to PSX

Another volatile trading session was observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Friday, with the benchmark KSE-100 swinging both ways before closing with a gain of 575 points. The index opened on a positive note but soon came under pressure, falling sharply to an intra-day low of 176, 110. 75 during the first half of the trading session. Selling pressure eased around mid-day, and the market gradually stabilised before staging a stronger recovery in the second half of the session. The index then moved higher in the final hours, hitting an intra-day high of 177, 583. 36 before paring some gains towards the close. At close, the benchmark index settled at 177, 166. 52, up by 574. 76 points or 0. 33%. “KSE 100 Index largely traded sideways during first half of trading session, however some investor interest was observed in the latter hours of trading, ” brokerage house Topline Securities said in its post-market report. Top positive contribution to the index came from OGDC, HUBC, ATRL, SRVI, PPL and MARI, as they cumulatively contributed 494 points to the index, it added. On a weekly basis, the index declined 1. 6% “primarily reflecting the continued rise in crude oil prices amid the ongoing stalemate in US-Iran peace talks. Elevated geopolitical tensions and uncertainty surrounding oil supplies have weighed on investor sentiment, ” Topline said. On Thursday, PSX stayed volatile as renewed geopolitical uncertainty and elevated international oil prices kept investors cautious, with selling in heavyweight stocks outweighing selective buying. The benchmark KSE-100 Index fell 254. 59 points, or 0. 14%, to close at 176, 591. 77 points. Globally, most Asian share indices were heading for weekly falls on Friday as stress in global bond markets showed little sign of abating, while a diplomatic deadlock in the Gulf ​lifted oil prices to one-month highs and kept inflation risks to the fore. Yields on US Treasuries had resumed their climb after Wednesday’s surprise intervention by ‌the Treasury brought barely a day of relief from selling. The rise came even as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he could further increase the government’s repurchases of Treasuries, and floated the idea of fiscal consolidation. Analysts were sceptical he could find enough spending cuts to seriously curb a budget deficit of more than 6% of gross domestic product, with interest charges alone this year running at $1. 2 trillion. Higher yields lift debt costs globally, just as tech giants are borrowing heavily to fund AI capex, while raising the discount on corporate earnings and challenging stock valuations. The strain was evident in the Nikkei, which slipped 0. 8%, bringing losses for the week so far to 4. 4%. South Korea and Taiwan both edged higher, but again were down for the week. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific ​shares outside Japan added 0. 5%. Meanwhile, the Pakistani rupee extended its marginal gains against the US dollar on Friday. The local unit closed the day at 277. 56, a gain of Re0. 01 against the greenback. Volume on the all-share index increased to 689. 17 million from 665. 19 million recorded in the previous close. The value of shares rose to Rs35. 66 billion from Rs30. 79 billion in the previous session. Cnergyico PK was the volume leader with 250. 24 million shares, followed by Pak Refinery with 30. 85 million shares, and K-Electric Ltd with 27. 10 million shares. Shares of 493 companies were traded on Friday, of which 246 registered an increase, 216 recorded a fall, and 31 remained unchanged.

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