The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) opened Tuesday’s trading session on a strong note, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining 643 points during early trading amid broad-based buying interest.
At 9:35am, the KSE-100 Index stood at 177,610.06 points, recording an increase of 643.38 points, or 0.36%, from the previous close.
Buying activity was witnessed across several major sectors, including automobiles, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, oil marketing companies (OMCs), and power generation.
Several index-heavy stocks also traded in positive territory. HUBCO, MARI, OGDC, PPL, POL, PSO, MCB, MEBL, and NBP were among the stocks supporting the early market gains.
The positive opening followed an improvement in Pakistan’s credit outlook. On Monday, Moody’s Ratings upgraded Pakistan’s local and foreign currency issuer and senior unsecured debt ratings to B3 from Caa1.
The KSE-100 had ended Monday’s session in negative territory after late profit-taking in heavyweight stocks erased most of the market’s earlier gains.
The benchmark index declined 199.84 points, or 0.11%, to close at 176,966.69 points.
However, selective buying in oil and gas and cement stocks helped limit the overall decline.
Global markets presented a mixed backdrop on Tuesday, with Asian equities falling while oil prices continued to decline.
Investors remained focused on developments surrounding potential US sanctions against Iran, although concerns over a broader disruption to oil supplies had eased.
The MSCI Asia-Pacific index excluding Japan fell 0.5%, while Japan’s Nikkei declined 0.9%. South Korea’s Kospi recorded a sharper drop of 2.7%.
Technology stocks also remained under pressure ahead of Nvidia’s quarterly results, scheduled for Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Alibaba’s planned $10.2 billion share sale weighed on technology sentiment as the company seeks to raise funds for its artificial intelligence ambitions.
Despite pressure in international markets, strong buying across key sectors helped the KSE-100 maintain positive momentum during the opening hours.
Investors are now expected to monitor corporate developments, global market trends, oil prices, and Pakistan’s improving credit outlook for further direction during Tuesday’s trading session.
