The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a robust rally on Friday as investors returned to the market with strong buying interest, driving the benchmark KSE-100 Index up by 4,898 points, or 3.13%, to close at 161,632.

According to a market report by Topline Securities, the surge was driven by optimism following reports that Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban regime had agreed to maintain a ceasefire after fresh talks in Istanbul.

Major positive contributions to the index came from United Bank Limited (UBL), Meezan Bank (MEBL), Fauji Fertilizer Company (FFC), Habib Bank Limited (HBL), Bank Al Habib (BAHL), Systems Limited (SYS), Lucky Cement (LUCK), and Bank Alfalah (BAFL), which collectively added 2,390 points.

Trading activity remained vibrant, with 486 companies participating in transactions involving 941 million shares worth Rs41.84 billion.

The most actively traded stocks by value included National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) with Rs3 billion, Bank of Punjab (BOP) with Rs2.54 billion, Hub Power Company (HUBC) with Rs2.2 billion, Pak Elektron Limited (PAEL) with Rs2.03 billion, and FFC with Rs1.5 billion.