After days of selling pressure, buying momentum returned to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) as the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), in line with market expectations, kept the policy rate unchanged. The benchmark KSE-100 Index gained nearly 1,200 points during the opening minutes of trading on Tuesday.
At 9:35am, the benchmark index was hovering at 163,359.39, a gain of 1,195.58 points or 0.74%.
Buying interest was observed in key sectors including cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs, power generation and refinery. Index-heavy stocks, including HUBCO, POL, PPL, SSGC, MCB, MEBL and UBL, traded in the green.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Monday decided to keep the policy rate unchanged at 11%. The committee noted that headline inflation rose significantly to 5.6% in September, whereas core inflation remained unchanged at 7.3%.
“The MPC assessed that the impact of the recent floods on the broader economy appears to be somewhat lower than anticipated at the time of its previous meeting,” read the statement.
On Monday, PSX began the rollover week on a bearish note as widespread selling pressure, profit-taking, and cautious investor sentiment drove the index sharply lower. The benchmark KSE-100 Index fell by 1,140.32 points, or 0.7%, to close at 162,163.81 points.
Internationally, Asian shares consolidated recent hefty gains on Tuesday as hopes for an easing in global trade tensions kept risk appetites keen, while the bull run in tech stocks counted on a bumper round of big-cap earnings this week.
The likelihood of lower borrowing costs in the United States and Canada this week supported bonds, while the dollar paused to see just how dovish the Federal Reserve might be on the outlook.
Meanwhile, safe-haven gold huddled around $4,000 an ounce, as a drop of 9% in five sessions squeezed leveraged money out of a very crowded trade.
Several Asian share markets have also hit all-time highs and were overdue for a breather.
The Nikkei eased 0.2%, having surged 2.5% on Monday as a rally in all things tech lifted it to gains of almost 27% so far this year.
Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi met U.S. President Donald Trump in Tokyo to discuss defence ties, trade and a package of U.S. investments in a $550 billion deal struck earlier this year.
South Korean stocks slipped 1.4%, giving back just some of Monday’s 2.6% jump. Sentiment was aided by data showing the economy outpaced forecasts in the third quarter, led by strength in consumption and exports.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged down 0.1%, while Chinese blue chips were little changed.
This is an intra-day update
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