PSX sees modest gains as investors weigh new IMF conditions
Business
The Pakistan Stock Exchange saw modest gains with the KSE-100 index rising by 368.74 points to 168,943.43, despite profit-taking and fading optimism after earlier IMF loan release.
KARACHI (Dunya News) - The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) experienced slight gains on Friday as investor sentiment remained cautious amid profit-taking and the growing concern over new conditions set by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
During early sessions, the KSE-100 index benchmark gained 368.74 points to reach 168,943.43 points, reflecting a positive change of 0.22 percent compared to previous close of 168,574.69 points.
Optimism fuelled by the release of loan tranche by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and surge in remittances, which propelled index to an all-time high earlier this week started fading on Thursday due to profit-taking spree.
A day earlier, the benchmark index closed bearish, falling by 877.17 points, a negative change of 0.52 percent, to settle at 168,574.69 points compared to 169,451.86 points on the previous trading day, according to PSX data.
During the session, the ready market recorded a trading volume of 1,288.969 million shares with a traded value of Rs55.231 billion, against 1,190.534 million shares valuing Rs50.493 billion in the previous session.
Out of 486 active companies in the ready market, 190 advanced, 257 declined, while 39 remained unchanged.
IMF slaps 11 new conditions to Pakistan's $7 billion loan programme
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has added 11 more stringent conditions on Pakistan under the latest staff-level review of its $7 billion bailout package, with the fresh additions the total number of conditions has risen to 64.
According to the IMF’s staff report released on Thursday, Pakistan will be required to publish the asset declarations of high-level federal civil servants on a government website by December 2026 to identify income–asset mismatches. The obligation will later be expanded to senior provincial civil servants, while banks will be given full access to these declarations.
By October 2026, Pakistan must also publish a detailed action plan addressing corruption vulnerabilities across 10 high-risk departments, based on institutional risk assessments. The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) will lead and coordinate these anti-corruption frameworks. Additionally, provincial anti-corruption establishments will be strengthened to receive financial intelligence and conduct specialised investigations.
The IMF’s conditions stem from its recent Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Assessment, which highlighted deep systemic weaknesses in Pakistan’s legal and administrative structures.
A major new condition relates to foreign remittances, after projected remittance costs were estimated to reach $1.5 billion in the coming years. Pakistan must conduct a comprehensive assessment of remittance charges and obstacles to cross-border payments and prepare an action plan by May 2026.
The IMF also demanded a study on bottlenecks in the local currency bond market by September 2026, followed by a strategic action plan for reforms.
