The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a historic milestone as the benchmark KSE-100 Index crossed the 90,000 level for the first time during intra-day trading on Friday but closed at 89,993 points by the end of the day.
At the time of closing, the index was at 89,993 points, marking an increase of 1,047 points or 1.18%. The index reached a record intra-day high of 90,593.61 points.
This is one of the fastest gains recorded by stocks on the main bourse, with 125 percent growth posted in just 18 months.
The bullish momentum was driven by strong buying interest in index-heavy stocks, including those in the automobile assembly, commercial banking, fertilizer, oil and gas exploration, and oil marketing company sectors. Notable stocks such as OGDC, PPL, SSGC, NBP, and MEBL traded positively, contributing to the index’s upward trajectory.
The stock market’s recent upward trend is attributed to improved economic indicators and expectations of a significant policy rate cut by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) in its upcoming Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, scheduled for November 4, 2024. Analysts are anticipating a potential interest rate reduction of at least 200 basis points, spurred by easing inflationary pressures.
In September 2024, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation rate was recorded at 6.9%, and it is expected to remain stable in October, within an estimated range of 6.5% to 7%.
Top Volumes:
| SCRIP | PRICE | HIGH | LOW | CHANGE | VOLUME |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FFL | 9.97 | 10.19 | 9.16 | 0.78 | 57,561,820 |
| KEL | 4.56 | 4.88 | 4.55 | -0.24 | 41,399,129 |
| SSGC | 12.05 | 12.05 | 11.51 | 1.03 | 38,036,205 |
| FCCL | 33.91 | 34.4 | 30.91 | 2.53 | 31,553,452 |
| WTL | 1.26 | 1.34 | 1.25 | -0.05 | 26,011,705 |
| PSO | 225.76 | 225.76 | 209.0 | 19.74 | 23,434,446 |
| OGDC | 177.0 | 182.8 | 173.0 | 0.28 | 22,422,781 |
