The Pakistan Stock Exchange closed the second trading day of the week at a record high after a highly volatile session marked by sharp intraday swings and heavy volumes.
The benchmark KSE-100 index began the day on a positive note and moved higher during the opening minutes. By 9:46 am, the index had gained 1,418 points to hit 183,826 with traded volume recorded at over 31.2 million shares.
The early gains, however, proved short-lived as selling pressure pushed the PSX into negative territory. At one point, the KSE-100 index was down by 1,156 points at 181,251, while volumes rose sharply to more than 162 million shares.
Momentum shifted again in the second half of the session as strong buying emerged across major sectors. Around 1:29 pm, the KSE-100 index had surged by 2,846 points to 185,254.47 with volumes crossing 404.9 million shares.
The rally strengthened further towards the close, taking the Pakistani stock market to an all-time intraday high. At about 3:28 pm, the KSE-100 index was up by 3,073 points at 185,481.45, as volumes increased to 586.9 million shares.
The market later eased slightly from the peak but still ended the session at its highest-ever closing level. The KSE-100 index closed at 185,062, up by 2,653 points, a gain of 1.45 percent for the day.
On a yearly basis, the stock market has posted a strong performance, with the KSE-100 index up by 59.19 percent over the past year.
In year-to-date terms, the index has gained 6.32 percent. Over the last 52 weeks, the benchmark has traded between a low of 101,598.91 and a high of 185,481.45.
Despite the strong close, several KSE-100 stocks ended the day lower. PSEL recorded the highest percentage decline, falling 5.52 percent to close at Rs1,136.63. SSOM lost 2.89 percent, while MEHT declined by 2.59 percent. UNITY closed 2.55 percent lower and BOP fell by 2 percent.
Other stocks that finished in negative territory included MTL, PIBTL, HUMNL, SHFA, SSGC, JVDC, PPL, EFERT, FATIMA and ISL, each posting modest losses.
On the positive side, ATRL led the gainers with a jump of 8.25 percent to Rs749.44. MCB followed with a 7.90 percent increase, while AIRLINK rose by 6.62 percent. NATF gained 6.35 percent and AICL added 5.95 percent.
Strong buying was also seen in PABC, MEBL, HBL, LUCK and AKBL, which recorded gains ranging between 3 and 5 percent. Other notable advancers included INDU, KEL, UBL, ILP, NBP, AGP, BAFL and SRVI.
The record close shows sustained investor interest, backed by strong volumes, although sharp intraday movements indicate continued profit-taking at higher levels.
