Key Points
- Benchmark KSE-100 breaches 179,000 mark for the first time
- Index gains nearly 2,900 points in late-session rally
- Broad-based buying seen across index-heavy sectors
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Stock Exchange’s benchmark KSE-100 Index surged past the 179,000 level for the first time on Friday, extending its record-breaking run as strong buying pushed the market sharply higher during the second half of the trading session.
The index touched an intra-day high of 179,467.83 points and a low of 176,709.51 during the session. It settled at 179,166.32 at the close, marking a gain of 2,810.83 points, or 1.59 per cent, from the previous close of 176,355.49.
Market participants reported broad-based buying across key sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, fertilisers, oil and gas exploration firms, oil marketing companies, power generation, and refineries. Trading activity remained robust, with total volume recorded at 510.29 million shares.
Index-heavy stocks such as HUBCO, ARL, MARI, OGDC, PPL, POL, PSO, HBL, NBP, and UBL all traded higher, contributing significantly to the benchmark’s advance.
Analysts attributed the rally to a combination of improved macroeconomic indicators, ample liquidity, and expectations of further monetary easing. Saad Hanif, Head of Research at Ismail Iqbal Securities, said new-year positioning and easing inflation had strengthened equity market appeal relative to fixed income.
He said the market was factoring in a 50 basis point cut in the policy rate at the upcoming Monetary Policy Committee meeting, adding that improved earnings visibility, particularly in banking and cyclical sectors, had supported a re-rating of equities.
Pakistan’s headline inflation eased to 5.6 per cent on a year-on-year basis in December 2025, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, in line with the Ministry of Finance’s projected range of 5.5 to 6.5 per cent.
Separately, the State Bank of Pakistan reported that total liquid foreign exchange reserves stood at $21.012 billion as of December 26, 2025, marginally lower than $21.023 billion recorded a week earlier.
The rally followed a strong start to the new year on Thursday, when the KSE-100 gained 2,301.17 points, or 1.32 per cent, to close at 176,355.49. The benchmark is now up 2.94 per cent year-to-date and has risen 52.98 per cent over the past year, having traded in a 52-week range of 101,598.91 to 179,467.84.
International markets also opened in 2026 on a positive note, with Asian and US equity futures trading higher in thin holiday conditions, supporting risk sentiment across emerging markets.
