PSX Surges as Investor Confidence Grows

Driven by positive earnings expectations, a stable rupee, and robust institutional investment from both domestic and international sources, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed substantial bullish activity. During Wednesday’s trading session, the KSE-100 Index, a key market indicator, jumped by more than 1,400 points.

As of 1:05pm, the KSE-100 Index stood at 75,227.48, reflecting an increase of 1,456.74 points, equivalent to a 0.97% rise.

Significant buying activity was evident in vital sectors such as automobile manufacturing, commercial banking, power generation, and oil refining. Major stocks influencing the index, including PRL, ARL, HUBCO, MEBL, NBP, and BOP, all showed positive trading results.

Moody’s Upgrades Pakistani Banks

In a significant development for Pakistan’s financial sector, Moody’s Ratings has revised upwards the local and foreign-currency long-term deposit ratings of five major Pakistani banks. These banks include Allied Bank Limited (ABL), Habib Bank Ltd (HBL), MCB Bank Limited (MCB), National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), and United Bank Ltd (UBL); their ratings have been elevated from Caa2 to Caa1.

These rating adjustments follow Moody’s recent decision to upgrade the government of Pakistan’s local and foreign currency issuer and senior unsecured debt ratings to Caa1 from Caa2. This reflects Pakistan’s strengthening external financial position, bolstered by successful implementation of reforms under the IMF Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme.

The PSX sustained its record-breaking rally on Tuesday, with the KSE-100 Index closing at a historic high of 74,770.75 points, marking a gain of 1,574 points or 1.06%.

Global Markets Face Pressure

Meanwhile, global stock markets experienced downward pressure on Wednesday, triggered by a tech-driven selloff on Wall Street. The dollar strengthened ahead of a crucial meeting of central bankers scheduled later in the week.

Stock futures indicated a weaker opening in Europe, and most Asian markets were trading in negative territory. Tech-heavy indexes in Taiwan and South Korea saw some of the steepest declines, partly due to concerns about potential impacts from the U.S. administration on companies within the technology sector.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares excluding Japan decreased by over 1%, while EUROSTOXX 50 futures declined by 0.64%, and DAX futures fell by 0.63%. S&P 500 futures edged down by 0.27%, and Nasdaq futures decreased by 0.44%, continuing the downward trend from the previous day’s cash session.

Japan’s Nikkei dropped by 1.7%, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Tech Index decreased by 1.3%.

This information reflects an intra-day market update.