PSX: buying continues, KSE-100 up over 700 points

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) experienced a significant surge on Thursday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index rising more than 700 points within the first minutes of trading. At 9:35am, the index stood at 170,675.18, reflecting a 0.42% increase. Investors focused on several key sectors, such as automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, and OMCs.

Prominent index stocks like DGKC, HBL, MCB, MEBL, NBP, MARI, POL, and PSO also showed positive performance. On a related note, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) extended the deadline for filing income tax returns for the 2026 tax year from September 30 to October 15. The PSX's recovery continued as selective buying in commercial banks, cement, and fertilizer stocks bolstered the market, propelling the KSE-100 Index to a gain of 368.92 points, or 0.22%, reaching 169,969.33 points.

Despite a subdued performance of Asian stocks and elevated global bond yields due to moderate US inflation and ongoing geopolitical tensions, optimism remained present in the market. MSCI's Asia-Pacific index outside Japan experienced a minor decline of 0.2%, while South Korea's KOSPI slipped by 0.14%. Meanwhile, Japan's Nikkei saw a rise over 1% as chip-related shares rallied.

Nasdaq and S&P 500 futures were up by 0.3%. Conversely, European stock futures faced a 0.75% decline. US inflation data for August revealed a lower-than-expected increase, and price pressures were less severe in the previous month than initially reported, leading traders to reduce expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike on October 28.

With the Fed having raised rates in September for the first time in three years and signaling further rate hikes, the probability of a rate increase during the month has dropped to 38%, down from 50% the previous day.