The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) continued its upward momentum amid speculation of an upcoming interest rate cut next week, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index surging by nearly 700 points during Wednesday’s trading session.
By 1:45pm, the benchmark index had reached 79,686.15, marking a gain of 699.06 points or 0.89%. The rally was predominantly driven by strong buying activity in the banking sector, as well as in fertilizer, pharmaceutical, oil and gas exploration companies, and oil marketing companies (OMCs).
Key stocks such as OGDC, PPL, PSO, SHEL, HBL, MCB, and NBP traded positively, contributing to the overall market optimism.
Market analysts attributed the positive sentiment to expectations of another reduction in the policy rate by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) in its upcoming Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. According to a survey by JS Global, a brokerage house, there is anticipation in the market for a significant rate cut, with expectations ranging from a 100 basis points (bps) cut to a more aggressive 150 bps reduction.
After a delay, the SBP recently published the advance calendar for MPC meetings scheduled between July and December 2024, with the first meeting slated for July 29.
On Tuesday, the PSX also saw gains as the KSE-100 Index closed up by nearly 450 points, finishing at 78,987.09.
Meanwhile, global markets showed mixed performance, with Asian stocks subdued following underwhelming earnings reports from major U.S. tech firms Tesla and Alphabet. MSCI’s index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dipped slightly by 0.08%, while Japan’s Nikkei fell by 0.23%.
