KSE-100 hits new all-time high after IMF board approves $1.2bn for Pakistan

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) continued its upward momentum on Tuesday as the benchmark KSE-100 Index closed at a fresh all-time high following the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) approval of a $1.2 billion disbursement for Pakistan. The index recorded a steady climb throughout the session, touching an intra-day high of 169,601.03.

At the close, the KSE-100 settled at 169,456.38, up 1,153.14 points or 0.69%. Market participants attributed the rally to investor confidence after the IMF Executive Board sanctioned nearly $1.1 billion under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and $220 million under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), keeping the $8.4 billion programme on track.

Topline Securities said strong and sustained buying by local mutual funds supported the rally, with key stocks including Fauji Fertilizer Company (FFC), Lucky Cement (LUCK), Habib Bank Limited (HBL), Pakistan State Oil (PSO) and Maple Leaf Cement Factory (MLCF) contributing around 640 points to the index’s gains. Analysts said the IMF approval has now raised total disbursements under the two arrangements to about $3.3 billion.

The upbeat session followed Monday’s strong start to the week, when the benchmark index jumped 1,217.67 points to close at 168,303.25 as institutional interest and sentiment strengthened.

In the currency market, the Pakistani rupee posted a marginal gain against the US dollar, closing at 280.40, up Re0.01. Total volume on the all-share index increased to 1,031 million shares compared with 783.08 million in the previous session, while the traded value rose to Rs51.32 billion from Rs49.95 billion.

K-Electric Limited led the volume chart with 86.72 million shares, followed by Bunnys Limited with 62.06 million shares and PIA Holding Company with 41.12 million shares. Out of 483 actively traded companies, 272 advanced, 179 declined and 32 remained unchanged.