A buying frenzy gripped the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Tuesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index posting a record rally of 6,079 points — a 5.23% jump — after former US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire agreement between Iran and Israel.
The benchmark closed at 122,246.63, recovering nearly all losses from the previous session when geopolitical tensions triggered a steep selloff. The KSE-100 had dropped 3,855 points on Monday amid fears of a broader conflict following US military action in Iran.
“This marks the second-highest single-day increase in points at close,” said brokerage house Arif Habib Limited (AHL), which credited the recovery to improving geopolitical sentiment and a concurrent 3–4% drop in global oil prices.
Trading was briefly halted for one hour earlier in the day when the KSE-30 index jumped by more than 5%, triggering the PSX’s circuit breaker mechanism. Activity resumed at 12:31pm, with across-the-board gains seen in index-heavy sectors, including banks, oil and gas, autos, and power.
Stocks such as OGDC, PPL, POL, HUBCO, UBL, and PSO traded firmly in the green, buoyed by easing external risk and improving investor confidence.
Research heads at both AHL and JS Global attributed the surge to the de-escalation in the Middle East conflict and a positive outlook on Pakistan’s external financing prospects. Pakistan expects $3.3 billion in upcoming foreign inflows — including Chinese commercial refinancing — which analysts believe could lift the central bank’s reserves above $14 billion by the end of FY25.
