Buying returns as KSE-100 settles near 150,000 amid debt retirement

Buying returned to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), with the benchmark KSE-100 Index settling near the 150,000 level on Monday.

Positive momentum pushed the index to an intra-day high of 150,066.00, while it closed at 149,971.12, up 1,353.35 points or 0.91%.

Advisor to the Finance Minister Khurram Schehzad on Sunday said Pakistan retired Rs2,600 billion of debt ahead of schedule, including over Rs1.6 trillion owed to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), completed in just 59 days — a record move in fiscal management.

Sana Tawfik, Head of Research at Arif Habib Limited, noted that investor interest in stocks and specific sectors was contributing to market gains. The early retirement of government debt, along with Asian Development Bank (ADB) funding for emergency relief, also supported sentiment.

On the macroeconomic front, Pakistan’s headline inflation for August 2025 stood at 3% year-on-year, lower than 4.1% recorded in July, according to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics data.

The previous week had seen subdued equity market performance, with the KSE-100 Index slipping 875 points or 0.6% to 148,618, amid foreign selling, weak sectoral performance, and cautious investor sentiment.