RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: Pakistan Stock Exchange extended its advance on Friday as sustained buying interest lifted major indices and strengthened market capitalization.

The benchmark KSE-100 Index finished at 161,935.19, rising by 1,277.69 points from the previous close of 160,657.50. During the session, the index touched an intraday low of 160,791.78 before recovering to a high of 162,118.76.

BRIndex100 closed at 17,051.28, gaining 153.38 points or 0.91 percent, with a turnover of 520.81 million shares. BRIndex30 also strengthened, ending at 54,272.13 after rising by 719.18 points or 1.34 percent on 326.59 million shares traded.

According to Topline Securities analysts, the upbeat sentiment was driven by the National Assembly’s approval of the 27th Amendment, which helped clarify the political outlook and ease recent investor concerns. Analysts noted that the strongest positive contributions to the KSE-100 came from HBL, UBL, Maple Leaf Cement (MLCF), OGDC and PPL, which collectively added 514 points to the index.

Trading volumes eased slightly compared with the previous session. The ready market recorded a turnover of 673.45 million shares, down from 797.17 million shares on Thursday, while the traded value amounted to Rs34.65 billion.

Market capitalization nevertheless increased to Rs18.43 trillion from Rs18.29 trillion.

Market breadth remained firmly positive, with 276 companies advancing, 155 declining and 49 unchanged in the ready market. In the futures segment, 216 contracts closed higher, 101 ended lower and 7 were unchanged.

Pace (Pakistan) Ltd led the ready market by volume, trading 51.76 million shares and closing at Rs27.61. F. Nat. Equities followed with 37.67 million shares, closing at Rs 21.08, while the Bank of Punjab recorded 36.99 million shares and ended at Rs 35.11.

Strong price movements were observed among textile shares, with Khyber Textile Mills emerging as the top gainer, rising by Rs164.64 to close at Rs1,992.13. Sapphire Textile Mills followed with an increase of Rs88.02, finishing at Rs1,464.01. In contrast, Unilever Pakistan Foods recorded a steep loss of Rs442.41 to close at Rs28,556.59, while Rafhan Maize Products fell by Rs63.21 to settle at Rs9,414.92.

The BR Automobile Assembler Index closed at 24,637.61 after rising by 100.69 points or 0.41 percent, supported by 4.19 million shares. The BR Cement Index settled at 12,871.99 after gaining 77.68 points or 0.61 percent with 76.14 million shares traded.

The BR Commercial Banks Index improved to 48,643.50, adding 476.68 points or 0.99 percent on 69.08 million shares. The BR Power Generation and Distribution Index rose to 25,086.66 after gaining 296.02 points or 1.19 percent, backed by 43.71 million shares.

The BR Oil and Gas Index closed at 13,630.55 after increasing by 187.18 points or 1.39 percent with 54.48 million shares traded. Meanwhile, the BR Technology & Communications Index saw a modest rise of 8.79 points or 0.24 percent to finish at 3,745.04, leading all sectoral categories in activity with 86.34 million shares changing hands.

With gains recorded across key indices, strong sectoral participation and sustained interest in both ready and futures markets, the Pakistan Stock Exchange concluded the session on a broadly positive and confidence-driven note.