ISLAMABAD: Positive sentiment returned to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Friday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining over 500 points as investors cheered S&P Global’s upgrade of Pakistan’s sovereign credit rating to ‘B—’ from ‘CCC+’.
Buying was observed in key sectors including automobile assemblers, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs, and power generation. Index-heavy stocks, including HUBCO, ARL, MARI, OGDC, PPL, and SNGPL, traded in the green.
At close, the benchmark index settled at 139,207.28, showing an increase of 514.62 points or 0.37%.
In a significant move, S&P Global upgraded Pakistan’s sovereign credit rating from ‘CCC+’ to ‘B-’ on Thursday, assigning it a ‘stable’ outlook. The agency cited the stabilisation of the country’s finances and reserves, supported by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Arif Habib Limited (AHL) stated, “The S&P upgrade, following Fitch’s rating increase in April 2025, is expected to boost investor confidence, lower external borrowing costs, and enhance Pakistan’s chances of re-entering the international bond markets.”
On Friday, a total of 634,805,882 shares were traded as compared to 648,800,865 shares on the last working day, whereas the price of shares stood at PKR 24.611 billion against PKR 28.117 billion on the previous trading day.
As many as 479 companies transacted their shares in the stock market, 211 of them recorded gains and 236 met losses, whereas the share price of 32 companies remained unchanged.
On Thursday, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) experienced a bearish trend as investor confidence weakened amid growing macroeconomic concerns.
The benchmark KSE-100 index dropped by 561.69 points, or 0.40%, closing at 138,692.67 points.
Globally, Asian markets eased from recent highs on Friday, with Japanese stocks retreating from record peaks as investors took profits ahead of a critical week featuring US President Donald Trump’s tariff deadline and several central bank meetings.
The US dollar strengthened against the yen after rebounding from a two-week low on Thursday, supported by strong US economic data. Meanwhile, the Japanese yen weakened amid political uncertainty following media reports that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba plans to step down.
Benchmark Japanese government bond yields remained just below their highest levels since 2008.
Japan’s broad Topix index, which had surged over 5% in the previous two sessions to reach an all-time high, fell 0.7%, while the Nikkei declined 0.5% from Thursday’s one-year peak.
Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 0.5%, mainland Chinese blue-chip stocks fell 0.2%, and Australia’s equity benchmark decreased by 0.5%.
