- The KSE-100 index wins 756.91 points, farm at 112,743.79.
- The benchmark index reaches an intrajournal summit of 112,877.01, up 0.79%.
- Market lobe dismissed at 111,717.17, down 0.24% intraday.
The stock market rebounded on Tuesday, while investors weighed the latest economic data and provided for the upcoming decisions of monetary policy.
The market has remained linked to the beach throughout the session, with thin volumes reflecting a prudent feeling before key economic events.
The KSE-100 index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) ended at 112,743.79 points, displaying a gain of 756.91 points, or 0.68%, recovering from the sharp drop on Monday. The reference index affected an intra -day summit of 112,877.01 points, while the lowest level was recorded at 111,717.17 points.
Market experts noted that, although inflation data provided a certain support, optimism was tempered by the expansion of the trade deficit.
“The market has remained linked to the beach in recent days, and the lack of volumes is also a concern. The excitation of IPC figures yesterday was offset by the larger trade deficit than expected and neutralized the upward potential movement,” said Ahfaz Mustafa, CEO of Ismail Iqbal Securities.
“The next market catalyst will be monetary policy, followed by the completion of the IMF mission-this will help the market to decide the next management,” he added.
Pakistan’s inflation rate experienced a sharp drop in February 2025, falling to 1.5% in annual sliding (annual shift), marking the lowest level since September 2015, according to data from Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
The month in months, inflation decreased by 0.9%, contrasting with an increase of 0.2% in January and no change in February 2024. The average inflation rate for the first eight months (July-February) for the current financial year was 5.85%, a striking drop compared to the 27.96% recorded in the same period last year.
Despite this positive development, Pakistan’s trade deficit increased to $ 2.3 billion in February, marking an increase of 33.4% against $ 1.72 billion the same month last year. Exports dropped 5.57% to $ 2.44 billion, compared to $ 2.58 billion a year earlier, while imports increased by 10% to 4.738 billion dollars.
On one month from one month to the other, exports decreased by 17.35% against $ 2.95 billion in January, while imports dropped by 9.9% against $ 5.26 billion the previous month. In the first eight months of the financial year, total exports increased by 8.17% to $ 22.02 billion, compared to $ 20.36 billion in the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan banking sector has declared robust profits for 2024, the listed banks displaying a combined profit of nearly 600 billion rupees despite a tax burden of 650 billion rupees, according to the brokerage company Topline Securities.
Meezan Bank LTD (MEBL) has become the most profitable bank, recording the profits of 101.5 billion rupees, followed by United Bank LTD (UBL) to RS75.8 billion and MCB Bank LTD (MCB) to RS63.5 billion. Habib Bank Ltd (HBL) and Standard Charterd Pakistan LTD (SCBPL) completed the first five with profits of 57.8 billion rupees and 46.1 billion rupees, respectively.
The PSX had started the week on a weak note, the KSE-100 index plunging from 1,264.78 points, or 1.12%, to end at 111,986.89 points on Monday. The investors remained cautious before the next monetary policy meeting and the examination of the current IMF.