Buying interest returned to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Friday, helping the benchmark KSE-100 Index recover after several sessions of selling pressure, with gains led by heavyweight stocks across key sectors.
The market started the day on a positive note and extended its upward momentum through the session. By 12:03pm, the benchmark index had risen 1,378.76 points, or 0.79 percent, to 176,926.74.
As of 2:49pm, the KSE-100 Index was trading at 176,782.85, up 1,234.87 points or 0.70 percent from Thursday’s close of 175,547.98.
During the session, the benchmark touched an intraday high of 177,108.66 and a low of 176,405.33, while total traded volume stood at nearly 120 million shares. The index has gained 1.57 percent since the start of the year and is up 26.83 percent compared with the same period last year.
The rally was broad-based, with buying seen in automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, fertiliser, oil and gas exploration companies, oil marketing companies, power generation firms and refineries.
Among the major index movers, Attock Refinery (ARL), Hub Power (HUBCO), Pakistan State Oil (PSO), Mari Energies (MARI), Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC), Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), Pakistan Oilfields (POL), Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC), Habib Bank (HBL), MCB Bank (MCB) and Meezan Bank (MEBL) all traded in positive territory.
Activity was also strong in the broader market. TSBL remained one of the most actively traded stocks, while WorldCall Telecom (WTL), Cnergyico (CNERGY), Fauji Fertiliser Energy Limited (FNEL), Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL), Pakistan International Bulk Terminal (PIBTL), OBOY and CSIL also attracted investor interest.
Among the day’s best performers, WASL surged 14.45 percent, followed by FANM, CSIL, PINL, TRSM, ASTM, SHJS and TICL, all posting gains of around 10 percent or more.
On the losing side, DBCI dropped 10.01 percent, while OML declined 10 percent. Other notable laggards included ELCM, 786, JSIL, STPL, AMBL, KOHP, SURC and PAKL.
The rebound came a day after the market ended lower as investors remained cautious over uncertainty surrounding diplomatic engagements between the United States and Iran. On Thursday, the KSE-100 Index fell 495 points, or 0.28 percent, to close at 175,547.98.
Global markets also offered a supportive backdrop on Friday, with Asian equities staging a sharp recovery after strong gains on Wall Street eased concerns over the recent selloff in artificial intelligence-related stocks.
South Korea’s Kospi jumped more than 10 percent, while Japan’s Nikkei advanced 4.5 percent. MSCI’s broad Asia-Pacific index outside Japan gained 4.6 percent, buoyed by upbeat earnings from major technology companies that lifted sentiment across chipmakers.
Chinese markets also moved higher, with the CSI AI Index rising more than 7 percent and the Hang Seng Tech Index adding 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, US stock futures pointed to a firmer open, with Nasdaq futures rising 0.6 percent and S&P 500 futures gaining 0.3 percent. In Europe, futures tracking the EURO STOXX 50, FTSE and DAX indices also traded in positive territory.
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