PSX Continues Bullish Trend with Significant Gains

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) experienced a continuation of its positive momentum, as the KSE-100 Index demonstrated substantial growth, climbing almost 700 points in the initial trading hours on Monday.

As of 9:50 am, the benchmark index was recorded at 141,715.66, reflecting an upswing of 680.68 points, equivalent to a 0.48% increase.

Active buying was evident across crucial sectors, notably commercial banks, oil and gas exploration firms, oil marketing companies (OMCs), power generation entities, and refineries. Major stocks that significantly influence the index, including ARL, MARI, OGDC, PPL, POL, PSO, WAFI, HBL, MEBL, and NBP, showed positive trading activity.

Market analysts suggest that the buying surge is due to enhanced investor confidence following a recently established trade agreement between the United States and Pakistan, expected to result in reduced tariffs for Pakistan.

During the past week, the PSX concluded on a high note, with the KSE-100 Index reaching a record peak of 141,035 points, marking a weekly gain of 1.3%.

The index also achieved a new intraday high of 141,161 points, highlighting a considerable turnaround in market sentiment. This shift was largely fueled by an unexpected breakthrough in trade relations with the U.S. and a resurgence of investor confidence in Pakistan’s macroeconomic outlook.

Globally, Asian stock markets generally declined, mirroring trends on Wall Street, as concerns about the U.S. economy resurfaced, leading investors to anticipate a likely rate cut in September and weakening the dollar.

Initial resilience in U.S. stock futures and a sustained drop in oil prices helped partially offset losses. However, the negative implications of the July payrolls report were difficult to ignore.

Revisions indicated that payrolls were approximately 290,000 less than previously estimated. Furthermore, the three-month average growth rate decreased to 35,000 from an initial 231,000 at the start of the year.

President Donald Trump’s reaction, which included the dismissal of the head of Labor Statistics, did little to reassure markets and potentially undermined confidence in U.S. economic data.

The news of Trump’s impending appointment to a governorship position at the Federal Reserve also amplified concerns regarding the potential politicization of interest rate policies.

Anticipation of lower borrowing costs provided some support for equities, with S&P 500 futures slightly increasing by 0.1% and Nasdaq futures rising by 0.2%.

Nonetheless, Asian markets were still adjusting to Friday’s decline, with the Nikkei dropping by 2.1% and South Korea experiencing a 0.2% decrease.

In contrast, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan showed resilience, gaining 0.3%.

This is an intra-day update