The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday extended its bullish momentum at the start of a new business week to reach another all-time high as economic and geopolitical developments boosted investors’ confidence. As trading underway, the PSX’s benchmark KSE-100 index gained 854.18 points to climb to all-time high of 163,111.18 points, marking a change of 0.53 percent. But later profit-taking set in forcing the index to lose over 400 points to reach 162,726.32 points or 0.29 percent before noon. Share prices of 448 companies were traded so far, out of which 264 witnessed gains and 165 losses, while 19 remained unchanged. Experts said the recent cordial meeting between Pakistan’s civil-military leadership and US President Donald Trump has sparked positive sentiments among investors. Furthermore, the successful resolution of Rs1,225 billion power sector circular debt has provided as a decisive step towards fiscal discipline, investor confidence through collective efforts. This historic joint effort was led by the Prime Minister’s Task Force on Power in coordination with the Ministry of Energy, the State Bank of Pakistan, the Pakistan Banks Association, and 18 partner banks. This landmark restructuring represented a major breakthrough in addressing one of the most chronic challenges to Pakistan’s energy sector. On Friday, the 100-index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) had gained 2,976.92 points, an increase of 1.87 percent, closing at 162,257.01 points. A total of 1,714,917,163 shares valuing Rs70.744 billion were traded during the day as compared to 1,673,571,032 shares valuing Rs. 55.278 billion on the last trading day. As many as 484 companies transacted their shares in the stock market; 228 recorded gains and 230 sustained losses, whereas the share prices of 26 remained unchanged. The three top trading companies were WorldCall Telecom with 450,584,981 shares at Rs.1.85 per share, followed by K-Electric Limited with 112,632,537 shares at Rs.7.13 per share, and Cnergyico PK with 73,630,584 shares at Rs.8.81 per share. The top gainers were Rafhan Maize Products Company Limited, share prices of which increased by Rs.911.15 to close at Rs.10,506.10, and Sapphire Textile Mills Limited, which rose by Rs.128.91 to close at Rs.1,422.08. The major losers were PIA Holding Company LimitedB, which declined by Rs.1,353.22 to close at Rs.26,689.60, and Unilever Pakistan Foods Limited, which fell by Rs.148.99 to close at Rs.32,308.01. In the futures market, 633,777,000 shares were traded as compared to 557,601,500 shares on the previous trading day, while the total value stood at Rs.35.935 billion against Rs. 27.119 billion previously.
PSX climbs past 163,000 for the first time in history
