KARACHI: Amid persistent volatility fuelled by political noise and regional tensions, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Friday managed a marginal recovery, despite steep foreign selling of $197 million worth of stocks, as select buying helped the benchmark index close in the green amid a dearth of positive triggers.

Despite the relatively short trading session in the weekend session, volatility remained elevated as the benchmark fluctuated within a wide intraday range of approximately 4,500 points, touching a high of 174,148, a gain of 1,978 points, and a low of 169,593, a loss of 2,578 points.

Ali Najib, Deputy Head of Trading at Arif Habib Ltd, said PSX exhibited consolidation around the 172,000 level, with the KSE-100 index closing at 173,169.71, up 999.42 points or 0.58 per cent.

Overnight, the market had suffered an unprecedented plunge of 6,683 points, wiping out Rs713bn from market capitalisation.

Topline Securities Ltd noted that some respite was observed in the last trading session of the week, as investors came in to accumulate positions at attractive valuations.

The top positive contributors to the index were Oil and Gas Development Company, Maple Leaf Cement Factory, Pakistan Petroleum, Systems Ltd, and Fauji Fertiliser, which collectively contributed 654 points. Conversely, MCB Bank, TRG Pakistan, Pakistan Services Ltd, Bank Alfalah and Fatima Fertiliser came under selling pressure, trimming the benchmark by 243 points.

On the corporate front, Indus Motor Company reported strong financial results, posting 2QFY26 profit after tax of Rs5.98bn (earnings per share of Rs76.11), up

23pc year-on-year. Cum­ulatively, 1HFY26 earnings rose 28pc year-on-year to Rs12.7bn (EPS 161.60), marking the highest half-year profit since 2014.

The company announced a Rs46 per share dividend for the quarter, bringing the cumulative 1HFY26 payout to Rs97 per share.

Despite a mild recovery, investor participation remained flat, with trading volume easing to 537 million shares and traded value falling 13.05pc to Rs23.7 billion.

Analysts viewed the 170,000 level as a strong support zone, with the market staging a sharp rebound after hitting an intraday low of 169,593.

Published in Dawn, February 21st, 2026