The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) closed the first trading session of the week positive, with its benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining over 1,000 points during trading on Monday.
The KSE-100 remained in the positive territory throughout the session, hitting an intra-day high of 118,827.47.
At close, the benchmark index settled at 118,383.38, a gain of 1,067.79 points or 0.91%.
“The rally was largely driven by better-than-expected corporate earnings, which bolstered investor sentiment and sparked widespread buying,” brokerage house Topline Securities said.
“Among the key highlights of the session were the impressive financial results announced by Meezan Bank Limited (MEBL) and Sazgar Engineering Works (SAZEW).
“Both companies outperformed expectations and emerged as the stars of the day, driving significant investor interest and uplifting the broader market tone,” it said.
Heavyweight stocks played a crucial role in powering the index higher, with MEBL, MCB, UBL, SNGP, and HUBC collectively contributing 827 points — underscoring their substantial influence on market direction, Topline said.
On Friday, the PSX closed the last session of the week positive, with the KSE-100 gaining 414 points.
Internationally, Asian equities and US stock futures slid on Monday while the dollar slumped, as anxiety over tariffs and public criticism of the Federal Reserve by President Donald Trump hit sentiment, leading gold prices to a new high.
Trump launched a series of attacks against Fed Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday, with his team evaluating whether they could fire Powell, a move that has great consequence for the central bank’s independence and for global markets.
Most markets were closed on Friday and some remain on holiday for Easter Monday. S&P 500 futures fell 0.64% and Nasdaq futures eased 0.53%. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei fell 1% while South Korea’s benchmark index was steady.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani rupee posted marginal decline against the US dollar, depreciating 0.05% during trading in the inter-bank market on Monday. At close, the local currency settled at 280.87 against greenback, a loss of Re0.15 as compared to the previous day close.
Volume on the all-share index increased to 672.44 million from 425.12 million recorded in the previous close.
The value of shares rose to Rs36.42 billion from Rs34.49 billion in the previous session.
Cnergyico PK was the volume leader with 103.03 million shares, followed by Power Cement with 62.59 million shares, and B.O.Punjab with 42.59 million shares.
Shares of 252 companies were traded on Monday, of which 252 registered an increase, 158 recorded a fall, while 41 remained unchanged.
