Clarity on political front
\nKSE-100 Index has crossed the 62,000 front amid news of Shehbaz forming a coalition govt
\nkarachi
\nThe Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) extended its stellar run for a second day in a row mostly after the country\u2019s major political parties negotiated their way out of a stalemate over \u2018who forms the next government\u2019, scoring 926.92 points or 1.51%, cutting post-poll loss to 1,990 points or 3.1%.
\nThe benchmark KSE-100 Shares Index closed at 62,153.84 level, registering a total trading volume of 179.31 million shares, showcasing a market heavily tilted towards the upside.
\nArif Habib Limited in a note said the market continued its climb from sub-60,000 levels, adding another 4.26% to Tuesday\u2019s gains.
\nThis surge brings the week-on-week performance to -1.38%. The rally was broad-based, with 83 stocks advancing and only 8 declining.
\nThe PPL, ENGRO, and EFERT were the top gainers, while OGDC, HUBC, and MEBL weighed down the index.
\nAs per news reports, the rally comes amid anticipation of revised gas prices by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) today (Wednesday).
\nMoreover, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has also urged the government to raise gas tariffs by mid-February.
\nNotably, HUBC\u2019s second-quarter earnings fell short of market consensus, with Dividend Per Share lower than anticipated. With this upward momentum, the index is strongly likely to test the 63,000-64,000 resistance zone.
\nNotably, 83 companies experienced gains, while only 8 reported losses. Additionally, 4 companies maintained their position, and 5 remained untreated. On Tuesday, former allies such as the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan People\u2019s Party (PPP) agreed to establish a coalition government, also giving an open invitation to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to become a part of the rapprochement process.
\nMeanwhile, Moody\u2019s Investors Service has warned that the ride for a coalition government would be extremely bumpy in terms of unity and political strength, causing problems in achieving consensus for needed reforms.
\nMarket players are of the view that despite the political breakthrough, the resulting administration could be highly unstable. The political impasse ended after the PML-N-led alliance nominated former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif as Pakistan\u2019s new parliamentary leader, meeting the PPP\u2019s demands.
\nA day earlier, the market plummeted below the crucial 60,000 level in the first 15 minutes after the opening bell amid the ongoing political uncertainty.
\nHowever, it staged an epic comeback as investors wantonly harvested the abundant oversold stocks in late buying, surging over 1,600 points from its intraday low and closing marginally higher.
\nThe index surged by as much as 1,614 points or 2.7% from its intraday low, concluding at 61,226.93, marking a gain of 161.61 points or 0.26% from the prior session\u2019s close.
\nAnalysts pinned the fluctuations on the uncertainty over the formation of a new government, adding, that the KSE-100\u2019s recent rebound after political uncertainty highlights the inherent agility of market players.
\nThe PSX witnessed a vicious two-day sell-off that shoved the benchmark index below 60,000 following the February 8 general elections.
\nMSCI includes PSX to frontier market index
\nThe stock market also received a boost as MSCI on Tuesday announced the inclusion of 22 Pakistani companies in its Frontier Market and Small Cap indexes, effective from February 29.
\nThe global index provider added three Pakistani firms \u2014 Bank Al Habib Ltd, Interloop Ltd and Sui North Gas Pipelines Ltd \u2014 to its Frontier Market Index, which tracks the performance of equity markets in 28 countries.
\nMeanwhile, 19 Pakistani companies including PSX were added to the MSCI Frontier Market Small Cap Index, which covers about 14% of the free float-adjusted market capitalisation of the Frontier Market Index.
\n\u201cAfter this review, Pakistan\u2019s weight in the Index is expected to be around 3%,\u201d the brokerage said. \u201cDue to this adjustment, we anticipate some net flows, although the quantum will not be significant.\u201d it added.
\nAnalysts said the index inclusion is a positive development for Pakistan\u2019s stock market, as it reflected the improved fundamentals and prospects of the local companies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Clarity on political front KSE-100 Index has crossed the 62,000 front amid news of Shehbaz forming a coalition govt karachi The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) extended its stellar run for a second day in a row mostly after the country\u2019s major political parties negotiated their way out of a stalemate over \u2018who forms the next […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":387239,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-387214","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business"},"yoast_head":"\n