Stocks Hit Record 76,000 on IMF Deal Hopes and UAE Investment
Stocks surged to a record high, briefly crossing 76,000 points, driven by progress on an IMF agreement and a $10 billion investment pledge from the UAE, dealers said.
The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE 100-share Index gained 868.56 points, or 1.16%, closing at 75,983.04 points. The KSE-30 index rose by 330.84 points, or 1.37%, to 24,444.81 points.
“Stocks hit an all-time high in a pre-budget rally, led by gains across the board, following the UAE’s investment pledge and a stable rupee amid rising SBP forex reserves,” said analyst Ahsan Mehanti at Arif Habib Corp.
“Expectations of lower SBP policy rates, government plans to privatize state-owned enterprises, and foreign inflows helped drive the record close.”
Traded shares decreased to 609.848 million from 758.944 million. The trading value rose to Rs23.580 billion from Rs16.708 billion. Market capital expanded to Rs10.248 trillion from Rs10.154 trillion. Of 383 active companies, 215 closed in green, 145 in red, and 23 were unchanged.
Nabeel Haroon at Topline Securities noted a positive session, with the highest index point at 76,248.76 and the lowest at 75,263.06 points.
“This market positivity is due to significant progress in IMF talks, leading to a potential staff-level agreement,” Haroon said.
Major contributions came from UBL, MCB, MEBL, HUBC,, adding a total of 414 points. The highest increase was seen in Hoechst Pakistan Limited shares, which rose by Rs102.72 to Rs1,472.50 per share, followed by Mari Petroleum Company Limited, up by Rs 49.66 to Rs2,836.07 per share. The biggest declines were in Shahmurad Sugar Mills Limited, down by Rs 32.07 to Rs 567.84 per share, and Rafhan Maize Products Company Limited, down by Rs30 to Rs7,970 per share.
Brokerage Arif Habib Ltd reported a weekly gain of 0.87% as the index hit 76,000. Significant progress was made in IMF-Pakistan negotiations on economic policies and reforms.
Further gains are expected, though a drop below 74,000 could signal a correction. K-Electric Ltd. led in volume with 130.069 million shares, closing lower by 3 paisas to Rs5.21 per share. WorldCall Telecom followed with 50.574 million shares, also down by 3 paisas to Rs1.42 per share.
Other active stocks included Dewan Cement, Hum Network, Nishat Mills Ltd, Symmetry Group Ltd, Dewan Motors, Pak Petroleum XD, Lalpir Power, and Pak Elektron. In the Future Market, 317 companies traded: 199 rose, 112 fell, and 6 remained unchanged.
