KEY POINTS
- Index heavyweights led advance, with banking and energy-related stocks providing major support.
- Global markets remained volatile amid AI-driven tech concerns, oil price tensions and mixed Asian cues.
- Pakistani rupee posted a marginal gain against the US dollar in interbank trade.
ISLAMABAD: Buying momentum at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) extended into a fourth consecutive session on Wednesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index closing higher by 931 points as investor confidence remained firm despite mixed global market signals.
The index climbed to an intra-day high of 188,312.21 before settling at 187,832.08 at the close, marking a gain of 931.34 points or 0.50 per cent from the previous session.
Market performance was largely driven by gains in key index heavyweights.
Shares of MEBL, ENGROH, NBP, UBL and HMB collectively added around 740 points to the benchmark, brokerage house Topline Securities said in its post-market review.
Some of the upside was trimmed by losses in SYS, EFERT and PPL, which together shaved 149 points off the index.
Adding to positive sentiment, Interloop Limited (ILP), one of Pakistan’s largest textile exporters, reported a sharp jump in earnings.
The company’s profit-after-tax for the half-year ended December 31, 2025, surged nearly 300 per cent year-on-year to Rs 5.90 billion, compared with Rs 1.48 billion in the same period last year.
The rally followed another strong session on Tuesday, when the KSE-100 Index closed about 1 per cent higher, reflecting sustained local buying interest.
Global equity markets offered mixed cues. Asian stocks traded on shaky ground on Wednesday after steep losses in US and European equities, driven by fears that rapid advances in artificial intelligence could disrupt traditional software and data-driven business models.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan eased 0.2 per cent, with Japan’s Nikkei falling 1.23 per cent.
US equity futures also pointed lower, with Nasdaq futures down 0.25 per cent after losses in the previous cash session.
S&P 500 futures slipped 0.1 per cent, and EUROSTOXX 50 futures edged down 0.07 per cent.
In commodities, oil prices moved higher following reports that the United States shot down an Iranian drone and intercepted armed boats near a US-flagged vessel in a key shipping lane.
Precious metals stabilised after a recent selloff, offering some support to risk sentiment.
On the currency front, the Pakistani rupee recorded a marginal gain against the US dollar in the inter-bank market, appreciating 0.01 per cent to close at 279.72, up by Re 0.03.
Trading activity picked up sharply. Volume on the all-share index rose to 1,195.26 million shares from 848.56 million in the previous session, although the value of shares traded declined to Rs 44.10 billion from Rs 50.02 billion.
K-Electric Ltd led volumes with 590.87 million shares traded, followed by Waves Home Appliances with 36.31 million shares and First National Equities with 32.94 million shares.
A total of 483 companies’ shares were traded during the session.
Of these, 246 stocks closed higher, 188 declined, and 49 ended unchanged, underscoring a broadly positive tone at the local bourse.
