KARACHI: Investors who had run to take cover following Iran’s missile attacks on US bases in Iraq on Wednesday, rushed back to the market on Thursday after a highly unexpected reconciliatory code struck by US President Donald Trump in his speech the night before.
As soon as market opened, the KSE-100 index immediately propelled 640 points and there was no looking back. The market displayed a spectacular rally during the day that saw the index roar past the 42,000 level and settled with massive gains of 1,165.5 points (2.82 per cent) — the highest single day rise in eight months, since May 22, 2019.
The issue that bolstered investors’ sentiment was that President Trump de-escalated the nerve-wrenching tensions that were felt across the globe which though threatened additional sanctions on Iran but made no mention of military retaliation.
On the local political scene, the passage of three Pakistan Services (Amendment) Bills concerning the tenure of services chiefs of Army, Air Force and the Navy without any resistance from two major political parties in the opposition also brought in a rare breeze of fresh air into domestic politics.