Key Points
- Broad-based buying seen across major sectors
- Rally follows Thursday’s 0.28% decline
ISLAMABAD: Buying returned to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Friday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index rising 0.79 per cent, or 1,383.92 points, by midday as investors returned to equities after several sessions of selling pressure.
According to figures available on the PSX Data Portal, the benchmark index stood at 176,931.90 points, up from the previous close of 175,547.98 points.
During the early session, the index touched an intraday high of 177,108.66 points and a low of 176,405.33 points, while trading volume reached 86,567,576 shares.
Broad-based buying was observed in key sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, fertiliser, oil and gas exploration companies, oil marketing companies (OMCs), power generation and refineries.
Index-heavy stocks, including Attock Refinery Limited (ARL), Hub Power Company (HUBCO), Pakistan State Oil (PSO), Mari Energies (MARI), Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC), Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), Pakistan Oilfields Limited (POL), Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC), Habib Bank Limited (HBL), MCB Bank and Meezan Bank (MEBL), traded in positive territory.
The benchmark index has gained 26.93 per cent over the past year, according to PSX data, though it remains 1.65 per cent lower since the start of 2026.
It is currently trading about 7.4 per cent below its 52-week high of 191,032.73 points and roughly 27.3 per cent above its 52-week low of 138,957.71 points.
Pakistan stocks rebound
The rebound follows Thursday’s cautious session, when investors largely remained on the sidelines amid uncertainty surrounding diplomatic engagements between the United States and Iran over regional stability. The KSE-100 Index closed down 0.28 per cent or 495.00 points, at 175,547.98 points in the preceding session.
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International markets also provided a supportive backdrop. Asian equities rallied sharply on Friday, led by a recovery in technology and artificial intelligence-linked stocks.
South Korea’s Kospi surged more than 10 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei advanced 4.5 per cent, and MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 4.6 per cent.
Meanwhile, Nasdaq futures gained 0.6 per cent and S&P 500 futures added 0.3 per cent. In Europe, EURO STOXX 50 futures rose 0.5 per cent, while FTSE and DAX futures edged higher. Chinese markets also advanced, with the CSI Artificial Intelligence Index climbing more than 7 per cent and the Hang Seng Tech Index gaining 0.5 per cent.
Market participants will closely watch trading activity during the remainder of the session to determine whether institutional buying can sustain Friday’s rally and help the benchmark index build on its recovery.
