KARACHI (Dunya News) – The Pakistan Stock Market (PSX) kicked off the new business week on a strong note as it has crossed the 174,000 points mark for the first time in history, reflecting growing investor confidence.
During intraday trading, the market saw a sharp rise, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining more than 1,900 points. The index reached a record high of 174,411 points, marking a major achievement for the stock market.
The sharp increase in stock market points reflects strong investor confidence and positive market sentiment, which continues to drive growth in the stock exchange.
On Friday, the benchmark index closed on bullish note, gaining 1,570.51 points, a positive change of 0.92 percent, to settle at 172,400.73 points compared to 170,830.22 points on the previous trading day, according to PSX data.
During the session, the ready market witnessed a trading volume of 797.999 million shares with a traded value of Rs 38.062 billion, against 811.558 million shares valuing Rs 29.795 billion in the previous session. Market capitalization increased to Rs 19.465 trillion from Rs 19.361 trillion a day earlier.
Out of 482 active companies in the ready market, 221 advanced, 229 declined, while 32 remained unchanged.
Pakistan seeks to convert $1b UAE deposit into investment: DPM
On Saturday, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Pakistan is seeking to convert part of its financial support from the United Arab Emirates into long-term investment to reduce external debt.
The statement came after talks with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan during his visit to Islamabad.
Dar said Pakistan was engaged with the UAE on converting $1 billion in deposits into equity investment, potentially involving stakes in companies linked to the Fauji Fertilizer Group, a move that would end Pakistan’s repayment obligation on that portion of the funds.
Speaking at a year-end briefing, Dar said Pakistan had already begun discussions with the UAE on rolling over the first $1 billion tranche, but Islamabad now wanted to replace short-term borrowing with investment.
“They will be acquiring some shares, and this liability will end,” Dar said, adding that discussions were under way for the transaction to be completed by March 31.