Karachi, Pakistan – November 22, 2023 – The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) continued its bullish run today, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index crossing the 58,000 level for the first time in history. The index closed at 58,123.48 points, up 1.07% from the previous day's close.
At 12:45pm, the benchmark index was hovering at 58,203.85 level, an increase of 832.27 points or 1.45%.
Across-the-board buying was witnessed, with index-heavy sectors including automobile assemblers, cement, chemical, commercial banks, fertilizer, oil and gas exploration companies and OMCs trading in the green.
On Tuesday, the benchmark index had gained 294 points or 0.51% to settle at 57,371.59.
The ongoing bullish trend comes amid the country’s improved economic indicators and the interim government’s successful negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the first review, which will unlock $700 million in funding.
Analysts expect that after the review Pakistan will be able to attract further inflows from its other multilateral and bilateral partners.
“One of the fastest but not unexpected recovery at PSX,” said Mohammed Sohail, CEO of Topline Securities, in a post on social media platform X.
The expert shared that the bourse has delivered a 50% return in USD terms in six months.
“And the good thing is… This recovery has just started. Market PE [price to earning ratio] of 3-4 times still at an unbelievably low levels,” he added.
Convening a meeting of the Donor Coordination Committee (DCC) at the Ministry of Economic Affairs on Tuesday, caretaker finance minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar, reported positive signs of economic recovery, expecting GDP growth between 2 to 2.5% in the fiscal year 2024.
She highlighted that despite external factors impacting Pakistan’s economy, including tightening global financial conditions and rising commodity prices, the successful review of the IMF staff-level agreement was a significant achievement.
