PSX surges as KSE-100 gains over 600 points in intraday rally

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) extended its upward rally with the benchmark KSE-100 Index closing at the new highest level on Tuesday.

According to the PSX website, the market opened on a bullish note and the KSE-100 touched the highest level of 91,358.15 points during the intraday trading.

At the day’s close, the benchmark index settled at 90864.09 level, with an increase of 668.58 points or 0.74% from the previous close of 90195.51 points. 

A widespread buying spree was witnessed in the index-heavy cement and commercial bank sectors, with stocks of DGKC, MLCF, NBP, MEBL and SNGPL trading in the green.

Market analysts attributed the recent bullish momentum to anticipation of another rate cut by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) amid expectations of a lower inflation reading in October. 

Many economists expect the SBP to cut its key policy rate by 200 basis points in its upcoming Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting scheduled for November 4, 2024. 

This would be the fourth consecutive reduction since June.

Investor optimism is also fueled by positive corporate earnings reports and encouraging economic indicators.

The PSX posted a net gain of 5.6% last week, with the KSE-100 index reaching its highest-ever closing of 89,993.96 points, just shy of the 90,000 mark. This marked the highest weekly return in 27 weeks and the 47th highest weekly return since the index’s inception.