A buying rally continued at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining over 800 points during the opening hours of trading. By 9:45am, the index was at 119,357.67, reflecting an increase of 821.15 points, or 0.69%.

Broad-based buying momentum was seen in key sectors, including automobile assemblers, commercial banks, fertilizers, oil and gas exploration companies, oil marketing companies (OMCs), power generation, and refineries. Major stocks such as NRL, HUBCO, PSO, SNGPL, MARI, OGDC, PPL, HBL, NBP, and UBL traded in the green.

In a significant development, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) announced on Wednesday that it had received the second tranche of Special Drawing Rights (SDR) amounting to 760 million, equivalent to $1.02 billion, from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

This amount is expected to be reflected in the SBP’s foreign exchange reserves for the week ending May 16, 2025.

Additionally, the Power Division is preparing to brief the IMF virtually on May 15-16, 2025, regarding the circular debt situation, annual rebasing outlook, power sector subsidy size and composition, and carbon levy legislation.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government has made new commitments to the IMF aimed at reforming Pakistan’s energy sector, focusing on both power and gas.

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On May 13, the Pakistan Stock Exchange maintained bullish momentum as investors responded positively to the recent ceasefire between India and Pakistan.

Following the ceasefire on May 12, the stock market displayed an upward trend, indicating a favorable impact on the country’s economy. This positive shift was particularly noticeable at the start of the trading week.

In contrast, on May 8, the PSX experienced a significant decline as investor confidence waned. After experiencing substantial fluctuations, the KSE-100 index dropped by over 6,948 points, closing at 103,060 points.