PSX Surges to โRecord High โคFollowing Pakistan-Saudi Defense โPact
KARACHI: โ The โฃPakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) achievedโค a historic milestone onโ Thursday, closing at โฃa recordโค high โคnear the โข158,000-point mark, despiteโฃ recent economic headwinds including aโ current account deficit and โฃthe aftermath ofโฃ flooding.
The benchmark KSEโ 100 indexโค climbed 1,775.65 points, representing a โค1.14 percent increase, to settle at โค157,953.47. This significant rally was largely fueled by positive investor reaction to the โnewlyโข signed โฃStrategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA) between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.
The SMDA, formalized during Prime Ministerโข Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to Riyadh, is anticipatedโค to strengthen bilateral โrelations and โขpotentially unlock opportunities for Pakistani defence exports. The agreement, which establishes a mutualโ defenceโค commitment -โข considering aggression against โคone nation as aggression against both – has been interpretedโ as bolstering pakistan’sโฃ regional security position. The proclamation propelled the PSX to an intraday โฃpeak of 1,904 points.
Recent economic data revealed a current account deficit of $245 million in August, following a $379 million โขdeficit โคin โคJuly. This represents a widening โfrom the $82 million deficit โขrecorded in August 2024.
Strong performance fromโ leading companies underpinned โthe market’s gains. Engro Holdings, National Bank of pakistan, Mari energies,โค United โขBank, and Bank of Punjab collectively contributed 733 โpointsโฃ to the index’s overall increase. โฃTrading activity also saw a significant rise, with volumes increasing by โฃ30.66 percent to 1.95 billion shares, โคandโ the value โof shares traded growing by 16.54โ percent to Rs56.9 โขbillion. โCnergyico PK led in trading volume, with 213 million shares changing hands.
Ali Najib, Deputy Head of Trading โคat Arif โHabib Ltd, commented that the PSX had demonstrated aโ robust recovery after a period of consolidation,โข nearingโ the significant 158,000-point level.
Contributing to the positive market sentiment were favorable โglobal economic indicators. The US Federal Reserve’s โrecent โค25 basis point interestโ rate โcut, โcoupled with signalsโ of further easing โฃin โ2025, boosted investor confidence in emergingโ markets.
Domestically, the goverment’s accomplishedโ auction of Rs195 billion in T-bills, exceeding its Rs175โฃ billionโ target, provided furtherโฃ reassurance. The rejection of bidsโ for high-cost โขPakistan Investmentโ Bonds (PIBs)โ indicated confidence in a loosening monetary policy, which is expected to stimulate increased โขinvestmentโค in the equity market.
(Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2025)