After initial selling pressure, positive sentiment returned to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining over 400 points during the second half of the trading session on Friday.
The market started on a negative note, shedding over 2,000 points to hit an intra-day low of 162,411.25. However, it recouped sharply and by 2:35pm, the benchmark KSE-100 was hovering at 164,976.22, up by 445.42 points or 0.27%.
Buying was observed in key sectors including commercial banks, OMCs, refinery and power generation. Index-heavy stocks including HUBCO, ARL, NRL, PSO, SNGPL and SSGC, traded in the green.
In a key development, the inflow of overseas workers’ remittances into Pakistan stood at $3.2 billion in September 2025, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) data showed on Thursday.
Remittances increased by 11.3% year-on-year (YoY), compared to $2.9 billion recorded in the same month last year. On a monthly basis, remittances were up 1%, compared to $3.1 billion in August.
Moreover, two pivotal memorandums of understanding (MoUs) were signed, marking significant progress in K-Electric’s ownership and future collaboration framework.
The first MoU was signed for the sale and purchase of shares in KES Power Ltd. The second MoU was signed between K-Electric Limited and Trident Energy Ltd to explore strategic cooperation and investment opportunities in Pakistan’s power sector.
On Thursday, PSX closed on a negative note as broad-based selling pressure erased early gains, dragging key indices lower by the close. The benchmark KSE-100 Index fell 735.94 points, or 0.45%, to settle at 164,530.81.
Globally, Asian stocks limped towards the end of the week on a shaky footing on Friday as declines on Wall Street lingered into early trading, while commodity markets took a breather after their recent charge higher.
Globally, regional markets remain on track for one of their best years in a decade, firmly outstripping gains for US counterparts as President Donald Trump’s package of economic policies and tariffs prompts a surge of orders across the region to meet booming demand for AI-linked technology hardware.
The US trading session marked the point where a number of “well-subscribed, high-momentum trades” including gold, silver, crypto, and much of the S&P 500 “finally showed signs of exhaustion,” said Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone Group Ltd in Melbourne.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fluctuated between gains and losses, last down 0.2% as its gains for the week hung in the balance, after US stocks ended the previous session with mild declines.
Shares in Hong Kong were down the most, off 1.1%, while the Australian market slid 0.1% against a backdrop of volatile commodity markets. In South Korea, stocks surged 1.7%, extending gains for the region’s best-performing index.
This is an intra-day update
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