PSX: buying at bourse, KSE-100 gains nearly 1,300 points

Buying was observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining nearly 1,300 points during the second half of the trading session on Friday.

At 2:50pm, the benchmark index stood at 178,657.76, up 1,284.00 points, or 0.72%.

Key sectors saw buying, including commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs, and refineries. Index-heavy stocks, including ARL, PRL, MARI, POL, PSO, SSGC, HBL, MCB, NBP and UBL, traded in the green.

On Thursday, PSX witnessed a volatile session as the market reversed its early gains and closed sharply lower. Renewed selling pressure after midday wiped out the gains, amid investor caution over domestic political uncertainty.

The KSE-100 Index declined by 1,710.04 points, or 0.95%, to close at 177,373.76 points.

Globally, stocks in Asia were on steadier footing on Friday after a turbulent week dominated by ​revelations of extramarital affairs involving Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang that culminated in his resignation, in a blow to the global AI boom he helped advance.

US Treasury ‌yields climbed, with the 2-year yield hitting a one-month high, lifting the dollar as investors weighed the prospect of an outsized 50-basis-point rate hike by the Federal Reserve next month.

Huang stepped down on Thursday after reports of the affair, including one involving a suspected Chinese spy, which plunged the chipmaker into crisis and sent shockwaves through the AI industry.

His exit could have far-reaching consequences for US chip export policy and the broader AI ​industry and supply chain, given Huang’s push to preserve access to the Chinese market as well as his close ties with US President Donald Trump.

Nvidia shares fell 3% in extended trading, while those of its customers, including South ​Korea’s Naver, extended declines on Friday, with Naver down 2.75%.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.26%, reversing some of its 1.3% fall ​from the previous session. South Korea’s Kospi rose 2.35% while Japan’s Nikkei added 1.4%.

The recovery in global equities also follows last week’s market meltdown sparked by the Republicans’ electoral ​drubbing, which stoked fears that tighter regulation could slow the AI infrastructure buildout that has helped send stocks to record highs this year.

Nasdaq futures and S&P 500 futures rose more than 0.2% each, while ‌EUROSTOXX 50 ⁠futures fell 0.37%.

This is an intraday update