Overview
- The KSE-100 climbed 641.07 points to close at 165,417.51 on Wednesday, reversing a roughly 348-point drop from the previous trading day.
- Trading swung widely during the session, with the index moving between 164,060.34 and 165,629.35 while turnover rose to about 585.9 million shares and traded value reached roughly Rs20.07 billion, lifting market capitalisation to about Rs18.391 trillion.
- Selective buying in refinery and energy names powered the rally alongside index-heavy banks, cement and fertiliser stocks, with Engro Holdings, Lucky Cement, Fauji Fertiliser, Bank AL Habib and NBP among the main contributors.
- Investors remained guarded because higher oil prices tied to attacks near the Strait of Hormuz, the imposition of governor's rule in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and stronger US inflation data have raised uncertainty for market flows.
- Early Thursday trade showed further upside — the KSE-100 was near 165,716.65 at 9:55am, up about 299 points — signaling a developing follow-through that still needs fresh domestic or global catalysts to turn into a sustained rally.