PSX rises past 136,000 to new all-time high

Continuing its remarkable rally, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) touched another all-time high on Monday as it surged past 136,000 points over encouraging economic developments and robust interest from mutual funds and institutional investors.

The benchmark KSE-100 index added another 2,202.77 points, or 1.64%, to settle at 136,502.54 at the close of trading.

Since the commencement of the session, the market began its gradual ascent and didn’t look back, reaching the intra-day high at 136,841 just before the end of the day’s proceedings.

According to Topline Securities, the KSE-100 index surged to intra-day high of 2,542 points before closing at a new all-time peak of 136,503, registering a remarkable gain of 2,203 points, or 1.64%.
“The rally was fuelled by strong participation from local mutual funds and institutional investors,” it said in a report.

Banking sector heavyweights led the momentum, with UBL, HBL, Fauji Fertiliser Company, Bank AL Habib and MCB Bank collectively contributing 1,443 points to the benchmark index.

Overall market activity remained vibrant where trading volumes surpassed 841 million shares, while the total traded value climbed to Rs37 billion. Crescent Star Insurance emerged as the volume leader, which saw trading in 47 million shares, Topline added.

Arif Habib Limited (AHL), in its report, called Monday’s trading a very strong start to the week with the KSE-100 gaining 1.64% day-on-day to clear the 136k level.

Some 62 shares rose while 36 fell on the index, where UBL (+5.45%), HBL (+9.43%) and Fauji Fertiliser Company (+1.67%) contributed the most to index gains. In contrast, Pakistan Petroleum (-0.69%), PSO (-0.91%) and National Foods (-2.47%) were the biggest index drags, it said.

Among major economic news, it cited that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had expressed satisfaction with Pakistan’s economic progress as its Resident Representative Mahir Binici described the country’s performance under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) as “strong so far”.

Earlier, Pakistan and Vietnam agreed to launch negotiations for a preferential trade agreement (PTA) in 2025, following the revival of high-level economic dialogue between the two countries.

Among corporate developments, Honda Atlas Cars (+2.45%) is set to introduce its first-ever hybrid SUV in Pakistan, the HR-V e:HEV. This launch marks Honda’s official entry into the hybrid C-segment SUV, where the HR-V e:HEV will compete directly with established players.

Concluding its report, AHL expected further gains in the stock market with near-term support rising to 135k.