KARACHI: Pakistani stocks rose nearly three per cent on Friday on the back of an expected visit by the country's finance minister to discuss outstanding issues such as a capital gains tax, dealers said.

Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh is due to visit the Karachi Stock Exchange on Saturday.

The Karachi Stock Exchange's benchmark 100-share index was trading 2.84 per cent, or 327.34 points, higher at 11,842.93 on turnover of 127.75 million shares at 3:12 pm.

“We are hopeful that the finance minister will present a long-awaited package which will be beneficial for the market,” said Shuja Rizvi, a dealer at brokers Al-Hoqani Securities Ltd.