RECORDER REVIEW
KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) carried its bullish momentum into yet another week, climbing to an all-time intraday high of 147,534 points before closing at 146,492 points, up 1,109 points or 0.8 percent on a week-on-week basis.
BRIndex100 closed the week at 14,962.21 points which was 44.09 points higher than the previous week with an average daily turnover of 471.635 million. BRIndex30 closed 42,078.55 points which was 255.72 points lower than the previous week close. While the average daily turnover remains 220.493 million.
The four days trading week remained vibrant as investor confidence was buoyed by Moody’s upgrade of Pakistan’s sovereign rating and a wave of strong corporate earnings that kept sentiment upbeat.
Moody’s raised Pakistan’s credit rating one notch to Caa1 from Caa2, shifting the outlook to stable. The decision, based on improving external buffers, fiscal consolidation, and progress under the IMF program, provided a powerful boost to market morale.
The rally shows no signs of slowing, with investors responding positively to the sovereign rating upgrade and progress on structural reforms, observed JS Global in its weekly market review.
Analysts at Arif Habib Limited echoed the optimism, noting that the combination of robust earnings and the sovereign upgrade had created the perfect catalyst for the index to scale new peaks, while cautioning that developments on circular debt and company results would remain critical sentiment drivers.
On macroeconomic landscape, Pakistan’s power sector circular debt fell sharply to Rs1.6 trillion by the end of June 2025, down from Rs2.4 trillion a year earlier, after the government released Rs801 billion to clear arrears owed to power producers. Authorities are now working on a debt re-profiling plan with Chinese independent power producers, whose payables currently stand at Rs475 billion.
The rupee extended its run of modest gains, appreciating for the fourth consecutive week to close at 282.06 against the US dollar. Services exports rose 9.2 percent in FY25 to $8.4 billion, oil output ticked up by nearly one percent to 59,604 barrels per day, while auto sector sales climbed 28 percent year-on-year in July, reaching 11,034 units despite a sharp month-on-month fall caused by pre-budget buying in June.
AKD Securities described the week as volatile, noting that while the upgrade and earnings optimism provided momentum, delays in circular debt settlements weighed on oil and gas producers and marketing companies, dragging the index by more than 300 points.
Market remained volatile during the week, with gains capped by delays in circular debt payments that weighed on E&P and OMC stocks, the brokerage said, pointing out that leasing companies, textile spinning, and auto parts nevertheless emerged as strong outperformers.
Trading volumes slowed, with average daily activity falling by more than seven percent to 606 million shares and traded value dropping by over 13 percent to $143.8 million. Market capitalization, however, rose by Rs127 billion to close the week at Rs17.47 trillion, equivalent to $61.9 billion.
Banks were once again the engine of the rally, contributing more than 1,000 points to the index, followed by cement with 531 points, while autos and investment banks also provided support. Fertilizer, exploration and production companies, oil marketing firms, and the power sector, by contrast, remained under pressure.
Among individual scrips, Meezan Bank added 354 points, Lucky Cement 289, Habib Bank 253, Bank Alfalah 158, and Mari Petroleum 136. Fauji Fertilizer erased 313 points from the index, Pakistan Petroleum lost 198, UBL shed 195, OGDC slipped by 171, and Hubco dropped 125 points.
Airlink emerged as the star performer of the week, surging nearly 20 percent, followed by BankIslami which gained 17.6 percent and Thal Limited which climbed 16.8 percent. Youngsters Weaving Mills rose by over 15 percent, while FABL advanced nearly nine percent.
On the losing side, Unity Foods tumbled more than eight percent, GADT fell close to eight percent, and Pakistan Stock Exchange Limited, BNWM, and Pakistan Petroleum also closed lower.
Foreign corporates remained net sellers with outflows of $8.6 million, while overseas Pakistanis injected $6 million, helping to partially offset the foreign exodus. Overall, foreigners sold a net $2.6 million. Local investors absorbed much of the selling, with individuals and mutual funds providing support, while banks and insurance companies took profits.
