Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Tuesday closed bullish as investors took encouragement from robust economic data, including a 25% year-on-year surge in remittances that reached $3 billion in January 2025.
The KSE-100 index, after touching intra-day high of 1,855 points, settled at 113,010, an increase of 1,632 points, or 1.47%.
Analysts highlighted that rising crude oil prices, strong earnings in fertiliser, cement and banking sectors, along with expectations of further monetary easing by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), contributed to the market's positive momentum.
They added that spectators could expect strong movement as both local and foreign investors would react positively to the upcoming MSCI developments.
Ahsan Mehanti of Arif Habib Corp commented that stocks closed bullish as investors weighed robust data of remittances that amounted to $3 billion, a rise of 25% year-on-year, in January 2025.
He noted that surging crude oil prices, robust earnings in fertiliser, cement and banking sectors, and expectations of further SBP policy easing amid thin inflation played the role of catalysts in bullish close at the PSX.
At the end of trading, the benchmark KSE-100 index recorded a sharp increase of 1,632.41 points, or 1.47%, and settled at 113,010.38.
In its market review, Topline Securities remarked that bulls stood firm in Tuesday's trading session as the bourse witnessed a strong upward momentum, hitting the intra-day high of 1,855 points before closing at 113,010, up 1,632 points.
The positive trend could be attributed to the waning selling pressure from local institutions, as indicated by Monday's data of National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited (NCCPL), which allowed the market to sustain its gains, the brokerage house said. Additionally, better-than-expected corporate earnings bolstered investor confidence, driving fresh buying across key sectors.
The uptick was largely driven by strong performances from Engro Holdings, Pakistan Petroleum, Fauji Fertiliser Company, OGDC and Mari Petroleum, it added.
Arif Habib Limited (AHL), in its report, commented that the KSE-100 index witnessed another strong session as it got back into the prior range and did not show any signs of weakness.
Some 74 shares rose while 23 fell with Pakistan Petroleum (+4.96%), OGDC (+3.59%) and Fauji Fertiliser Company (+1.47%) contributing the most to the index gains. On the other hand, Systems Limited (-0.55%), Mehmood Textile Mills (-2.53%) and HBL (-0.36%) were the biggest drags, it said.
AHL noted that Pakistan's car sales rose to 11,868 units in January from 7,864 units in December. Among corporate results, Engro Polymer and Chemicals reported CY24 loss per share of Rs0.40 compared to earnings per share (EPS) of Rs9.12 in CY23. EPS for 4QCY24 came in at Rs2.34, down 61% year-on-year.
It added that if the KSE-100 could find support at 112,000, it would be well-positioned to move towards the top of the range at 115,500.
Muhammad Hasan Ather of JS Global said that the KSE-100 index surged 1,632 points, driven by strong buying in key sectors such as cement, exploration & production (E&P) and fertiliser.
The positive momentum stemmed from expectations about the MSCI review and increased foreign inflows. Additionally, sustained higher remittances bolstered market sentiment, he noted.
"With corporate earnings and MSCI adjustments on the horizon, the market is poised for continued growth, particularly in E&P, cement and auto sectors," the analyst added.
Overall trading volumes increased to 486.9 million shares compared with Monday's tally of 415.2 million. Shares of 447 companies were traded. Of these, 264 stocks closed higher, 117 fell and 66 remained unchanged.
The Bank of Punjab was the volume leader with trading in 59.1 million shares, rising Rs0.55 to close at Rs10.83. It was followed by WorldCall Telecom with 30.02 million shares, gaining Rs0.03 to close at Rs1.56 and Citi Pharma with 21.95 million shares, gaining Rs6.14 to close at Rs106.56. During the day, foreign investors sold shares worth Rs7.65 million, the NCCPL reported.
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