PSX Surges 365 Points to Record Highest-Ever Closing

The 100-Index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) gained 365.32 points on Wednesday to close at 86,205.66 points, its highest-ever closing.  A total of 474,333,405 shares were traded during the day, whereas the price of shares stood at Rs. 26.942 billion.  In a note, brokerage house Topline Securities said the rally was fueled by investor optimism following the successful Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit.   The summit heightened expectations of regional political and economic stability, strengthening market confidence. This positive sentiment, combined with robust corporate earnings, ignited a broad-based rally across multiple sectors, it added.  It further pointed out that LPL, NPL, and NCPL hit their upper circuit limits after news broke that the government would release outstanding amount and proposed four “take and pay” options for 18 Independent Power Producers (IPPs) established under the Power Generation Policies of 1994 and 2002. This development further uplifted sentiment in the power sector, adding momentum to the market’s rally, Topline said.  Major contributors to the index’s rise included PPL, HUBC, PSO, OGDC, and SEARL, which collectively added 368 points.