KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a bullish start to the week as the benchmark KSE-100 index surged past the 62,000 milestone, sparking optimism for a continued positive trend in the market.
In intraday trading, the KSE-100 index reached an impressive 62,912.61 points, reflecting a notable uptrend. Despite a slight dip in closing figures, the index finished at 62,493.05 points after gaining 801.80 points or 1.30%, up from the previous day’s close at 61,691.25 points.
Raza Jafri, Head of Equity at Intermarket Securities, highlighted that despite the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for November indicating high inflation, some market participants anticipate a rate cut in the upcoming Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) meeting. Jafri also noted the attraction toward cheap energy stocks, fueled by hopes of improvement in circular debt, stating that there is potential for money to shift from fixed income into equities.
Positive Trend in Pakistan Stock Market
Last week concluded on a positive note, with the benchmark index achieving a fresh all-time high, buoyed by increased foreign portfolio investment and positive economic indicators.
Ahsan Mehanti, an analyst at Arif Habib Limited, remarked, “Stocks closed a new all-time high amid rupee stability, strong key economic data and surging foreign portfolio investment.” The reports of a net foreign portfolio investment exceeding $30 million during November 2023 and government considerations for the privatization of struggling state-owned enterprises were noted as contributing factors to the record close.
Trading volumes surged, with 734.2 million shares traded compared to the previous day’s tally of 531.3 million. The total value of shares traded during the day amounted to Rs31.6 billion.
Among the actively traded stocks, WorldCall Telecom led the volume with 57.07 million shares, closing at Rs1.57 after a gain of Rs0.03. Fauji Cement followed with 41.9 million shares, gaining Rs1.21 to close at Rs20.07, and Oil & Gas Development traded 23.8 million shares, gaining Rs5.20 to close at Rs115.39.
