KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) achieved another milestone on Friday, surpassing the all-time high barrier of 120,000 points in intraday trade.
The benchmark KSE-100 index surged 1,855.30, or 1.56 per cent, to stand at 120,793.41, the highest today, from the yesterday close of 118,938.11 at 9:59 am.
The current 100 index stands at 119,730.91 with a change of 792.80, or 0.67 per cent at 1:11 pm. The day’s low was recorded at 119,085.73, while the market opened firmly in the green.
The bullish trend was witnessed following Thursday’s announcement by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who lowered the power tariffs by up to Rs7.69 per unit for domestic consumers and Rs7.59 for industrial units.
Mohammed Sohail, chief executive of Topline Securities, said that despite falling global markets, the index crossed the 120,000 barrier “amid expectations of better earnings after government cut power rates” as well as the promise to resolve circular debt.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed satisfaction over the stock market’s surge of 1800 points in a single day, reaching a historic milestone, state-run APP reported.
In a statement, the premier said that positive direction of the business in Pakistan Stock Exchange reflected growing investor confidence in the government policies.
“The government has announced a significant decrease in the power tariffs, which will not only give a massive relief to the domestic consumes but also it will be a welcoming sign for the business community and the industrial sector,” the prime minster remarked.
He noted that during the last year, improvement in the business environment and stability in macroeconomic indicators was possible only due to the government’s economic policies.
He assured that the government was providing all possible facilities to ensure business and investor friendly environment in the country.
