The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) continued its merry run as its benchmark KSE-100 Index crossed the 92,000-point barrier during the opening hours of trading on Monday.
At 11:50am, the benchmark index was hovering at 92,047.64, an increase of 1,187.79 points or 1.31%.
Buying was observed in key sectors including automobile assemblers, cement, chemical, commercial banks, fertilizer, oil and gas exploration companies and OMCs. Index-heavy stocks including OGDC, PPL, SNGP, SSGC and HCAR traded in the green.
The buying momentum comes on the back of expectations of another cut in the key policy rate in the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting scheduled for later in the day.
Some positive corporate results and improved economic indicators are also driving optimism.
The country also reported its first-ever quarterly budget surplus in over 20 years of Rs1.7 trillion during the first quarter of FY25, but some concerns exist over tax authorities missing their target.
During the previous week, the PSX witnessed a bullish trend on the back of investor interest mainly in blue chip oil and gas sector stocks. The benchmark KSE-100 index surged by 865.88 points weekly and closed at 90,859.85 points.
Globally, South Korean shares rose on Monday as the country’s opposition Democratic Party leader agreed to support the government’s move to scrap a scheme to tax profits on stock investments. The won strengthened, while the benchmark bond yield rose.
The benchmark KOSPI was up 39.24 points, or 1.54%, at 2,581.60, as of 02:46 GMT.
Meanwhile, Australian shares climbed on Monday after a three-session slide, with investors awaiting a central bank policy meeting later in the week for further direction.
The S&P/ASX 200 index inched 0.3% higher to 8,138.9 by 1133 GMT. The benchmark fell 1.1% last week in its worst week in nearly three months.
This is an intra-day update
Source: Brecorder
