KARACHI: Pakistan’s stock market witnessed renewed buying interest at the start of trading on Wednesday, with the benchmark index gaining more than 600 points in early trade.
At 10:05 am., the benchmark KSE-100 Index was up 652.68 points, or 0.37%, at 178,345.60 points.
Strong buying activity was observed in automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, fertilizers, oil and gas exploration companies, oil marketing firms, and power generation stocks.
Major index-heavyweight shares, including K-Electric, Mari Energies, Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), Pakistan Oilfields, Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), Habib Bank Limited (HBL), MCB Bank, National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), and United Bank Limited (UBL), traded in positive territory.
The gains followed a weak session on Tuesday, when the Pakistan Stock Exchange remained under pressure as investors adopted a cautious stance amid uncertainty surrounding regional geopolitical developments.
Profit-taking and selling pressure across major sectors pushed the market lower for a second consecutive session.
The KSE-100 Index closed down 778.95 points, or 0.44%, at 177,692.92 points on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, global markets showed a mixed performance on Wednesday, with Asian equities experiencing volatility.
Analysts warned of continued uncertainty and market fluctuations after technology and semiconductor stocks came under selling pressure in global markets a day earlier.
The MSCI Asia-Pacific Index excluding Japan was down 0.02%.
South Korea’s stock market, which had fallen as much as 10% on Tuesday in its worst single-day decline since March, rebounded 2.2% on Wednesday.
Japan’s Nikkei Index fluctuated between gains and losses before trading 0.8% lower.
On Wall Street, investors remained cautious amid concerns over rising debt-financed spending on artificial intelligence and fears that the U.S. Federal Reserve could maintain a tighter monetary policy stance for longer, leading to weakness in U.S. equities.
Oil prices also extended their week-long decline, trading near four-month lows reached in the previous session.
The weakness was driven by expectations that more oil tankers stranded in the Gulf since the outbreak of the Iran conflict would begin transiting through the Strait of Hormuz, easing concerns over potential supply disruptions.
