KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange extended its record-setting rally during the outgoing week, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index closing at an all-time high of 162,257 points, up 4,220 points or 2.67 percent on a week-on-week basis.
The surge was largely driven by strong gains in exploration and production, power and banking sectors, supported by positive developments on the economic and political fronts.
Trading activity reached new highs, with average daily volumes increasing 20 percent to 2.19 billion shares. However, the average daily traded value fell nearly 20 percent to USD 213.3 million. Sector-wise, exploration and production contributed 1,084 points to the index advance, followed by commercial banks with 955 points, the power sector with 888 points, investment banks with 455 points and cement with 221 points.
Among individual companies, HUB Power added 802 points to the index, followed by Mari Petroleum with 539 points, Engro Holdings with 438 points, Pakistan Petroleum with 401 points and Habib Bank with 336 points. Negative drags included Lucky Cement, which shaved 259 points off the index, TRG, TPL Growth, Millat Tractors and Packages Limited.
On a percentage basis, the leading gainers during the week were K-Electric, up 23 percent, Bestway Cement up 17.6 percent, HUB Power up 12.7 percent, DG Khan Cement up 11.1 percent and Mari Petroleum up 9.99 percent. Major losers were TPL Growth, Engro Polymer, Pakistan Oilfields, Packages and Bank of New York Mellon Pakistan, which fell between six and seven percent.
Volume leaders were K-Electric with 1.86 billion shares, WorldCall with 824 million, Cnergyico with 598 million, Bank of Punjab with 387 million and Pace with 215 million. The overall market capitalization rose to PKR 19.04 trillion, equivalent to USD 68 billion, reflecting a week-on-week increase of 2.5 percent in rupee terms and 2.6 percent in dollar terms.
Investor flows showed foreigners as net sellers of USD 13.66 million during the week, led by outflows in commercial banks, fertilizers and exploration and production companies. In contrast, local investors were net buyers of the same amount, supported by mutual funds, individuals and insurance companies.
Investor sentiment improved significantly following Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on September 25. The engagement came on the heels of earlier U.S. delegations visiting Pakistan and the signing of memoranda of understanding on the development of critical minerals, including rare earth elements.
Market momentum was further boosted by the government’s long-awaited circular debt resolution agreement signed on September 24, under which a financing package of PKR 1.225 trillion was arranged with banks at KIBOR minus 0.9 percent.
The agreement is aimed at addressing the country’s chronic power sector arrears, which stood at PKR 1.6 trillion in July 2025 compared with PKR 2.3 trillion a year earlier.
In parallel, a Saudi trade delegation visited Islamabad during the week to explore new bilateral trade opportunities in the wake of the recently signed strategic defence agreement.
Economic indicators provided additional support. Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves rose to USD 19.79 billion, up USD 58 million week-on-week, with the State Bank’s holdings at USD 14.38 billion. The Pakistani rupee appreciated marginally by 0.03 percent to close at 281.37 against the US dollar.
On the external sector, August crude oil imports by volume fell 16.3 percent year-on-year while petroleum product imports increased 3.8 percent. Oil production climbed 2.7 percent to 64,313 barrels per day during the week, with additional output from Pasakhi, Maramzai and Sharf fields. Moreover gas production improved 2.8 percent to 2,812 million cubic feet per day, driven by Sui, Makori East and Kandhkot.
Fertilizer demand also picked up sharply, with urea off take surging 469 percent year-on-year and DAP sales jumping 536 percent, supported by dealer discounts and lower channel inventories.
Meanwhile as per the reports, the IMF raised several concerns during the week, highlighting pending court cases affecting tax collection, the implications of the PKR 1.225 trillion power tariff settlements, delays in the Reko Diq project, unilateral tariff concessions on Chinese imports, and the absence of any mini-budget proposal.
Analysts expect the positive trajectory to continue in the coming weeks, with the KSE-100 Index anticipated to test 165,000 points by December 2025, supported by strong earnings in fertilizers, improved cash flows in oil and gas companies, healthy bank profitability and sustained foreign exchange stability.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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