PSX closes at record high as KSE-100 adds 365 points

KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) closed at an all-time high on Wednesday as the benchmark KSE-100 Index gained 365 points.

The benchmark Index surged to an all-time high of 86,205 points, up 365.32 points or 0.43 percent, from the previous closing of 85,840.34 points.

A total of 474.33 million shares were exchanged during the session, generating a total value of Rs26.94 billion, as against the previous turnover of 422.1 million shares, with a value of Rs24.46 billion.

An analyst at Topline Securities attributed the positive close to investors’ optimism at the Pakistan Stock Exchange following the successful Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.

“The summit heightened expectations of regional political and economic stability, strengthening market confidence. This positive sentiment, combined with robust corporate earnings, ignited a broad-based rally across multiple sectors,” as per the analyst.

According to market experts, the energy sector saw notable gains as LPL, NPL, and NCPL reached their upper circuit limits amid reports that the federal government was planning to settle outstanding payments and has proposed four “take and pay” options for 18 Independent Power Producers (IPPs) established under the Power Generation Policies of 1994 and 2002.

“This development further uplifted sentiment in the power sector, adding momentum to the market’s rally. Major contributors to the index’s rise included PPL, HUBC, PSO, OGDC, and SEARL, which collectively added 368 points,” the Topline Securities analyst said.

The Searle Company remained the most actively traded stock of the day at the PSX, with 26 million shares changing hands, followed by Hub Power Co., which saw the exchange of 24.34 million shares.

Hum Network remained the third with 22.57 million shares exchanged at the KSE-100 Index.