KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) surged to fresh records on Wednesday, buoyed by investor optimism following the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) positive assessment of the national economy.
During intraday trading, the benchmark KSE-100 Index gained 1,247 points to touch a historic peak of 152,223 points, up 0.83 percent from the previous close of 150,975. The day’s activity saw over 1.08 billion shares traded, worth Rs44.42 billion. Out of 479 companies, 226 closed higher, 232 fell, while 21 remained unchanged.
The rally followed remarks by SBP Governor Jameel Ahmad at the Pakistan Textile Council’s annual meeting, where he projected economic growth between 3.25% and 4.25% for FY2026. He highlighted improvements in foreign exchange reserves, now at $14.3 billion compared to $2.8 billion in early 2023, and record remittances of $38 billion. Inflation has dropped to 3.2%, allowing the central bank to reduce its policy rate to 11%.
While praising stability, PTC Chairman Fawad Anwar stressed that exporters still face high costs and policy barriers. He urged withdrawal of duties on key raw materials, capped sales tax, and subsidized financing to enhance competitiveness in global markets.
