The Pakistan Stock Exchange closed higher on Monday after a volatile session. KSE-100 gains 663 points took the benchmark index to 163,038.46 at the close, a rise of 0.41 per cent, according to Business Recorder.
The index had started the day under selling pressure and fell to an intraday low of 161,250.06 points. It then recovered towards the 162,000 level, gained pace in the afternoon session, crossed 163,000 and touched an intraday high of 163,477.08 points before easing slightly into the close.
Strong late-session buying drove the recovery. The rebound gave investors some relief after five straight weeks of losses, during which the index had shed 4,044.84 points, or 2.4 per cent, to close last week at 162,374.84 points.
KSE-100 gains 663 points: what drove the session
The State Bank of Pakistan’s monetary policy decision was the key event of the day. The central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee raised the policy rate by 50 basis points to 12 per cent, citing inflationary pressures and rising global commodity prices.
Feature Pakistan reported the rate decision earlier on Monday, when the bank said nine of the committee’s ten members had backed the rise. The market had opened lower on the same day, as our morning report on the session’s weak start showed, with the index falling towards the same 161,250 low seen in the close report. The full session arc, from a weak open to a firm close, shows how quickly sentiment turned once the decision was known.
Among the major contributors on Monday, UBL, ENGROH, LUCK, OGDC and MARI added around 718 points to the benchmark index between them, according to Bloom Pakistan. In contrast, MEBL, EFERT and FFC dragged the index down by about 317 points combined.
Trading activity reached around 376 million shares, with a total traded value of about Rs 16.2 billion.
Why the market turned despite a rate rise
A rate rise usually cools stock markets, because borrowing costs more and safer returns look more attractive. On Monday, however, the decision removed a key source of uncertainty. Investors had spent the morning guessing at the size of the move, and once the 50-basis-point rise was confirmed, buyers returned in the afternoon.
Global factors still weighed on sentiment. Geopolitical tensions, high international oil prices and the state of the world economy continued to shape how investors judged risk. Brent crude slipped 1.6 per cent to $114.88 a barrel on Monday, after reports that Qatari mediators were in Tehran on Sunday as part of an effort to de-escalate regional tensions in coordination with the United States.
Brent futures had jumped 6.2 per cent last week to their highest weekly close since mid-2022, as attacks on Saudi energy supplies stoked concern about supply. US crude futures fell 1.9 per cent to $101.29 a barrel on Monday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei dipped 0.5 per cent after losing 4.0 per cent last week, while South Korea’s main index fell 1.1 per cent, having shed almost 20 per cent so far this month. The MSCI broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan eased 0.1 per cent.
What comes next for investors
One strong close does not end five weeks of losses on its own. The index still sits well below the levels it held before the recent slide, and investors remained cautious on Monday despite the late buying, according to Bloom Pakistan.
The next tests will come from company results, energy prices and the next signals from the central bank. If oil prices stay high, inflation pressure will stay high too, and the bank has already warned that bringing inflation back into its 5 to 7 per cent target range will take longer than planned.
For small investors, the lesson of Monday is a familiar one: a market that falls hard in the morning can still close higher, and a single session rarely tells the full story. The trend over the coming weeks, not one day’s gain, will show whether the rebound has staying power.
The close figures were reported by Business Recorder and corroborated by Bloom Pakistan.
What did the KSE-100 close at on October 26?
The benchmark KSE-100 Index closed at 163,038.46 points, up 663.59 points or 0.41 per cent.
What was the intraday range?
The index traded between a low of 161,250.06 points and a high of 163,477.08 points.
