KARACHI: A combination of easing geopolitical tensions and expectations of a status quo in the State Bank of Pakistan’s policy rate spurred fresh investments in the equity market, driving the KSE 100 index to surpass the 168,000-point mark in intraday trade on Tuesday.

The market was buoyed by value hunting, with investors targeting attractive stocks across various sectors.

Ali Najib, Deputy Head of Trading at Arif Habib Ltd, commented that investor sentiment improved sharply after the weekend ceasefire announcement, which contributed to a 1,103-point rise, closing at 167,346 points. This marked a significant recovery from earlier dips.

The central bank is set to announce its monetary policy on Monday, with market expectations indicating a hold on the benchmark interest rate at 11pc due to the ongoing inflationary pressures, particularly from food prices post floods. However, a minority of analysts predict a 50-basis-point cut.

Topline Securities noted that the market retained its positive momentum, fluctuating between an intraday high of 168,414 and a low of 166,923. Key contributors to the rally included strong performances by Bank Al-Habib, Fauji Fertiliser, MCB Bank, Oil and Gas Development Company, and Pakistan Petroleum, which collectively added around 830 points to the index. However, profit-taking in stocks like Engro Holdings, K-Electric, and United Bank dampened the overall gains, reducing the index by 161 points.

With increased liquidity, the market is expected to settle above the 168,000-point level in the near term, though occasional profit-taking could limit further gains within the 165,000-170,000 range.Trading volume rose by 23.04pc, reaching 1.81 billion shares, while the total value of traded shares increased by 9.54pc, totalling Rs56.82 billion. K-Electric led the volume charts, trading 547.32 million shares.

Published in Dawn, October 22nd, 2025